


Clash of the Alphas

by Miz636



Series: Rise of an Alpha [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Good Slytherins, Hogwarts United, Slytherin Harry, Universe Alteration, War, Well-Meaning Dumbledore, Years 6-7, mentions of rape/non-con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-12
Updated: 2015-06-12
Packaged: 2018-04-03 02:05:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 48
Words: 209,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4082551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miz636/pseuds/Miz636
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With just two more years at Hogwarts left, Harry must fight for his position as Alpha when another Alpha challenges him for it  twice. As the war comes to a high point, everyone must get along and fight for their lives or they stand to lose everything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Clash of the Alphas, and for those who are just joining us, I hope you realize this is the third story in a trilogy that begins with Becoming Alpha. If you’re returning from Return of an Alpha, well then, welcome back. If you’re new and have just finished the two mentioned stories, I’m glad you see you! I hope you enjoy the wild ride ahead. :)

Deep in the Ministry of Magic, below the Department of Mysteries, were the court rooms of the British Ministry. In one of the largest rooms, the Wizengamot, the jury of the Wizarding World made up of mostly old Pureblood families, sat. At the center of the room, sitting in a chair with chains on its armrests that would tie a prisoner in place most of the time, was the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge.

Today, the day after the students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Scotland returned home, was the day the Wizengamot voted on whether or not Minister Fudge kept his job. Of course, everyone knew the answer including the man himself, but this was a formality that had to be kept.

After spending an entire year after being given true evidence denying that Lord Voldemort had returned, Cornelius Fudge was forced to admit he had been wrong as Albus Dumbledore had dueled the Dark Lord himself in the Ministry of Magic Atrium right in front of the Minister. That was a year that could have been spent preparing for war, but instead, it had been spent discrediting Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts among many other positions and titles, and Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived and the one who had seen Lord Voldemort come back at the loss of a friend’s life.

No, there was no doubt of the outcome of this meeting in the courtrooms.

“Cornelius Fudge,” Albus Dumbledore called as Chief Warlock, the head of the Wizengamot, “it has been unanimously agreed upon that you are no longer the Minister of Magic. The vote of No Confidence has been passed. Now, Mr. Fudge, it’s time for you to leave so that the Wizengamot may vote on your replacement.”

Ex-Minister Fudge slowly stood and left the courtroom, his shoulders slumped in his defeat.

“Do we have any nominations for someone among our own number?” Dumbledore called to the assembled group. One person raised her hand. “Yes?”

An older woman known as Augusta Longbottom stood and called out in a strong voice, “I nominate Amelia Bones.”

“Is the nomination seconded?” Dumbledore asked.

“Seconded!” another man called from the group, not bothering to stand.

“Very well, are there any other nominations, both in and out of the assembled?” Dumbledore asked, looking around. Not a single person spoke up. “Very well, all in favor of making Amelia Bones Minister of Magic raise your hands.”

Every single hand in the room besides those of Amelia Bones and Albus Dumbledore went up. Dumbledore looked as if he had expected the outcome while Amelia Bones was just shocked by the popularity she hadn’t realized she had.

“Unanimously voted by the Wizengamot, Madam Amelia Bones is now Minister Amelia Bones!” Dumbledore told the group, and there was clapping from most of the group as Amelia stood to accept her new position.

…

The rest of that quickly eventful day was full of action brought about by Minister Amelia Bones. She was among the few to know the _true_ damage that had been done over the years by ex-Minister Fudge, and now she was going to expose it to the rest of Magical Britain.

Within hours of ascending to her new post, Minister Bones had over fifty people arrested on the charge of being Marked Death Eaters, most from within the Ministry and the rest from the Wizengamot itself. Over one-hundred-and-fifty workers from the Ministry were fired for supporting the Dark Lord while another hundred were arrested for working towards being Marked or helping him. Those fired were to be watched, arrested at the first sight of helping the Dark Lord Voldemort.

Money was instantly transferred from the less-important departments to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, where Amelia Bones had been the Director just hours before. Letters were sent out for new recruits to the Aurors, though only Amelia Bones, Auror Samuel Davis, and Auror Nymphadora Tonks knew that none would be from the seventh years fresh out of Hogwarts as those students were being recruited elsewhere.

Minister Bones put great thought into her replacement as the Director of the DMLE, talking to a few close and trusted friends, before deciding that Auror Samuel Davis would take her place while Auror Rufus Scrimgeour would do better to keep his place as Head of the Auror Corps. Very few recognized the significance of giving Samuel Davis this new position, but quite soon the reasoning would become obvious.

The next few hours after those decisions were made, Minister Bones and Samuel Davis were locked up in her office with files and books full of the laws of the Ministry of Magic. Their discussion centered on the laws that disgusted or horrified the pair as a special pile was quickly made. That pile of laws would be _very_ quickly discarded, most likely within the next two or three days at the most.

When the clock struck eight o’clock in the evening, newly made Minister and Director shrunk the books and files they had yet to go through along with the special pile and their list of a few extra laws before using the Minister’s Floo to head out for the night, both going to the same destination, though very few knew that.

…

“You both are home late,” Daniella Davis commented as she gave her husband, Samuel, a kiss while Amelia Bones used her wand to get the soot off of herself.

“Is everyone here?” Amelia asked, ignoring the comment.

“Yes, everyone is here and waiting for news,” Daniella said, her brow furrowed in confusion and worry.

“We have some very important news, Dani,” Samuel Davis told her as he led the way to the living room of Marauder Manor, where they all lived under a Fidelius Charm for safety.

In the living room, Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, Daniel Greengrass, Samantha Greengrass, Augusta Longbottom, Xenophilius Lovegood, Fleur Delacour, Nymphadora Tonks, and a group of teenagers sat around on the various couches and chairs as well as the floor. The teens were many in number, and most of them had three-fold books in their laps or on the various tables of the room, Muggle pencils in hand as they wrote.

Harry Potter sat on a couch next to Tracey Davis, whom most viewed as his twin in everything but blood, while Tracey’s boyfriend Theodore Nott, known as Theo to his friends, sat on her other side. Neville Longbottom sat beside his grandmother, a small smile on his face at something he was reading in the odd book in front of him. Susan Bones, Amelia’s niece, was sitting with her best friend, Hannah Abbott, on the floor.

Daphne Greengrass was sharing a desk with Blaise Zabini; their friends were all waiting for the pair to _finally_ begin dating as they had been walking around each other for years, even after going to the Yule Ball together their fourth year. Daphne’s younger sister Astoria had her head on the shoulder of one Draco Black, formerly Draco Malfoy until the summer prior, both looking at Draco’s silver book; they had been dating since Christmas Break, though Daphne was often heard commenting that she was thankful they rarely showed it in public.

The final teen, Luna Lovegood, sat cross-legged on the floor by her father’s feet, staring up into the air rather than at the book in her lap, pencil sitting behind her ear.

More teenagers were expected to be joining the group within the week along with their families, but the number already there was plenty for the adults at the moment. Except for Luna and Astoria, all of the teens had just finished their fifth year at Hogwarts and were either sixteen or would be by the end of the summer, going into their second-to-last year at the magical school. Luna was a year younger than the eldest while Astoria was a year younger than Luna.

“You’re finally home,” Harry commented as he looked up from his emerald-green book known as a Journal, the first to spot the newly-arrived adults. “What happened at the Wizengamot?” he asked, putting aside his Journal and looking a lot more attentive. His main goal for after finishing at Hogwarts was to accept his seat on the Wizengamot and do some good in the Wizarding World, so any news interested him.

“A lot more than we were expecting,” Samuel said as he collapsed onto a couch, Daniella joining him while Amelia had already taken an empty armchair and had an arm over her eyes. “Fudge is out of office.”

Samuel was forced to be quiet as the teens all cheered loudly. Ex-Minister Fudge had been the cause of most of their troubles that past year at Hogwarts, so to hear justice being done was just what they wanted to hear.

“ _And_ ,” Samuel called over their cheers to quiet them, “Amelia is the new Minister.”

Silence fell over the room for a moment before everyone began congratulating Amelia, Susan jumping up to hug her aunt. It took many minutes for the room to quiet down, most of that time spent commenting on how she would do great and that they now had a competent Minister and more congratulations.

“One of my first actions was to give Samuel my old position as Director of the DMLE,” Amelia finally said, and that started the noise all over again, this time Harry and Tracey joining Daniella in hugging Samuel.

“After allocating a large sum of money towards the DMLE for Samuel, I spent most of the morning finding and arresting Death Eaters, use of Veritaserum permitted and mandatory,” she continued once there was quiet. “Fifty Marked Death Eaters were found in the Ministry and Wizengamot while over a hundred and fifty others were arrested with another hundred fired with a close watch being kept on them.”

There was a stunned silence at these words, which allowed Amelia to continue easily.

“Samuel and I then spent the next few hours working together to go through the newest laws and work backwards through them. Every single law made in the past year will be thrown out tomorrow along with many made in the five years prior to that. Before then only a few met our approval since Fudge came to power, though his predecessor was not much better. We’ll be spending the next two or three days just going through the laws to find the ones that are good.”

“A few can be changed to be better,” Samuel added. “The basic idea behind some laws is sound, but others added to the original content over the years and made them just horrific to look at, like werewolf laws.” Samuel nodded in Remus’s direction as he was their residential werewolf. “We’ll get many of the laws on werewolves revoked and set up a few extra clauses to them until after the war when we can really sit back and work on the various laws.”

“Maybe by then Neville, Draco, Theo, and I will be in the Wizengamot and can deal with those,” Harry commented, and the three boys mentioned nodded in agreement.

“That may very well happen, Harry,” Amelia said, “which is why we want all of you kids planning on going into law to help us with this. It will allow you to have a basic understanding of what you’ll have to work with.”

“We should wait to do this until Hermione is here in two days,” Tracey stated. “She’s most definitely going into law in some way after Hogwarts, so she really needs to see this.”

“We’ll leave those laws until next week to change at the Wizengamot,” Samuel decided as he and Amelia shared looks. “That way we’ll have most of the teens here to help out when we start in three days’ time. For now, Amelia and I will concentrate on getting completely rid of some of these, like the Educational Decrees made this year.”

As the teens applauded at that news, the adults shared looks that very few of the teens caught, though Harry was one of them. It obviously spoke of their feelings at how grown up he and his friends were along with how much they were trying to be part of the future of the Wizarding World, already helping with laws and the Wizengamot. Harry knew none of the adults liked it, but it was something all had come to resignedly accept.

“Samuel, have you met with the seventh years?” Amelia asked suddenly, stopping most of the happy chatter between the teens.

“Most want to continue formal training with the Aurors and will join until only at the end of the war, though many asked if it could be part-time so that they could pursue other jobs. Some said they would continue training on their own, but want become Healers instead. All wish to help in the war effort, though, and a few are offering services in different ways such as providing supplies for the Weasley twins at lower prices or for free or by spending a few hours a week working with those who need it, even agreeing to train new recruits not from Hogwarts.”

“That means we’ll have another forty Aurors along with another fifteen or so others willing to help in other ways?” Amelia asked to be sure, but Harry knew her math was correct. He had asked the seventh years himself near the end of the school year if they would be willing to join a special Auror force or help in other ways, hearing suggestions for how they could all help.

“That’s about right, yes,” Samuel agreed.

“I’m sure the Weasley twins will find plenty of ways to use supplies and helpers both for their joke shop and for creating new ideas,” Remus mused with an amused smile on his face.

“Oh, the twins will have their classmates making their pranks for the shop while the pair use that extra time they’ll suddenly have to invent new ideas, both for the war and their shop,” Blaise stated. “It’s what they’d do along with their third member,” he added, pointing at Tracey and Harry, referring to Ginny Weasley. Tracey and Harry just shared a look before shrugging, unable to deny it.

“Well, the extra Aurors will help in the long run,” Daniel Greengrass commented, “as will the twins’ products. For now, though, I believe we should let Amelia and Samuel find some food and perhaps something strong to drink after such a long, trying day.”

The grateful pair stood and went with the other adults into the kitchen before going into the dining room, where Harry knew they would continue to talk. In the living room, however, teens quickly claimed the abandoned couches and chairs, Journals in hand.

Looking down at his own Journal, Harry had to smile slightly, running a finger long the silver lining on the outside of the Journal that marked him as the Slytherin leader of his year. Susan and Astoria also had lining on their Journals; Astoria’s lining was emerald green and silver while Susan’s was black and yellow.

Placing a finger on the leftmost fold of his Journal, Harry watched as it activated. About half of the school was using the Journals at the moment, though Harry knew that, except for his closest friends, the other Journals were all black, some with colored lining.

Peeking in on various conversations told Harry that the discussions varied from homework to Quidditch to plans for the summer to the happenings at the Ministry. Very few knew of the news, but tomorrow the Journals would be teeming with conversations about Amelia Bones and Cornelius Fudge, many most likely asking after Dolores Umbridge as well.

Oh, it seemed the students of Hogwarts were all looking forward to the day when Umbridge reaped what was coming to her after all she had put them through that year. Everyone knew about the Blood Quills she had been forcing various students to use, most of them Muggle-born after Harry had scared her by recognizing the quill, throughout the year for _detention_. She had been torturing the students for _detention_.

Unfortunately for Madam Umbridge, she had absolutely _no_ idea that Amelia Bones had been collecting evidence against her all year in the form of memories, sheets of parchment, pictures, and even Blood Quills from the detentions along with many other things she had done that year. None of this was even mentioning the things she had done _before_ arriving at Hogwarts.

Madam Umbridge would never see the light of day again once Amelia Bones was done with her. That much Harry knew was fact.

…

Her first full day as Minister, Amelia Bones called a meeting of the full Wizengamot. The members supported striking an enormous number of prejudicial laws from the books so quickly that the Minister was able to call for the trial of Dolores Umbridge to be held in two days’ time.

Various people from the Wizengamot could be heard muttering about the new Minister, but none were upset because she was making amazing progress in just the first two days. They could all see that Amelia Bones meant business as she tore away the mess Fudge had left behind for her, cleaning it up as she went.

Many departments of the Ministry found themselves with new goals or gone that day and the next, the workers given a week to either leave the Ministry or find another department to work in. Some departments suddenly received more workers and money while others lost part of their funding as it could be better used elsewhere.

Supporters of Fudge quit their jobs in protest at the new Minister while others tried to fight with Minister Bones until she fired and replaced them.

Muggle-borns were suddenly given better jobs rather than the low-end stuff like secretarial work or other jobs that they shouldn’t be doing as they were more than qualified for the higher jobs. It seemed to Amelia that the Purebloods had used their power and money to get other Purebloods and Half-Bloods jobs over the Muggle-borns where they could, and she was anything but pleased.

By the morning of Umbridge’s trial, the Ministry of Magic had already been cleaned up more than most believed could happen in a decade, let alone four days. A few new laws had been implemented, mostly about how to fight the Dark Lord and his followers, while mostly laws had been completely scrapped, found to be worthless or just horrendous.

As the Wizengamot settled down for the trial of one Dolores Umbridge, they were shocked to see that most of the public audience was students of all ages from Hogwarts, all proudly wearing their school cloaks with their House seals obvious on the left side of their chests. The glares and dirty looks being shot at Madam Umbridge worried the Wizengamot, making them wonder what she had done during her tenure at the school that made even eleven-year-olds detest her so much.

Near the front of the students watching, sat Harry and his friends. Maya and Graham Pritchard, Natalie MacDonald, Hermione Granger, and Justin Finch-Fletchley had joined them at Marauder Manor with their parents, except for the Pritchards and MacDonalds, who allowed their three children to stay with the group as long as they wrote letters to them each day.

The large group of teens was sitting there, just staring at Umbridge with blank faces, only their eyes showing how they felt about her with their icy stares.

Samuel Davis was the one chosen to lead the prosecution against Madam Umbridge, so he was sitting at the front of the Wizengamot with all of the evidence, Professor Albus Dumbledore next to him to control the trial while Minister Bones was on Professor Dumbledore’s other side.

“This is the trial of one Madam Dolores Umbridge,” Professor Dumbledore announced to bring about silence to the room. “As the accused is already here, we may begin. Madam Dolores Umbridge has chosen to defend herself. Director Davis?”

Samuel stood and looked down upon the woman whose arms were pulling slightly at the chains wrapped around them to keep her in her chair. His eyes were hard, and those that truly knew the man could tell he was absolutely furious with her.

“Madam Umbridge, you have been brought here today because you have been charged with use of illegal of dark objects, use of dark objects on minors, abuse of positions, accepting bribes, and purposely causing trouble, among other, lesser charges. How do you plead?” Samuel began.

“Not guilty!” she yelled, looking angry.

“Now I will present the evidence,” Samuel informed the room. “The accusation of the use of dark objects is the most severe, so we will begin with that. First, we have the accused objects, brought to Minister Bones when she was still Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement by many students from Hogwarts throughout the most recent school year.”

Samuel pulled out his wand and a bag from inside his cloak, waving his wand to send the contents of the small bag floating above and in front of Madam Umbridge, visible for all to see. The black quills were quite recognizable to those who knew of them, and many students watching the proceedings looked as if they wished to pull out their own wands to destroy the offending objects, but they held themselves back.

Members of the Wizengamot cried out in outrage as they figured out what Samuel was insinuating had occurred while Madam Umbridge was heard denying the quills were hers and that the students were nasty little liars.

Once Professor Dumbledore had returned order to the courtroom, Samuel continued, “We have sheets of parchment written on in blood by various students, some with only one line and some covering it completely. Over twenty students turned in evidence, many more than once.”

With another wave of his wand, scrolls of parchment joined the quills, magically unrolling and spinning around slowly so that the red words were visible, even if they couldn’t be read from that distance. More outrage came of this, but Professor Dumbledore restored order quickly.

“Pictures of red skin, obviously from a Blood Quill, taken from each student. Some Muggle-born students even have faint scars of the words written as they did not know what the quills were until told by friends raised in our world.” The pictures quickly joined the rest of the evidence above Umbridge.

“Auror Tonks has a Pensieve that will project above rather than requiring us to go into it,” Samuel continued before more cries could be uttered. “Please, bring it out, Auror Tonks.”

Tonks was quite easily visible with her pink hair as she brought out the stone bowl and placed it on a conjured table before walking towards Samuel, who passed her multiple vials of silver memories. She then walked back to the Pensieve and deposited the memories into it and waited.

“These memories were personally drawn by Minister Bones when she held my position, and all have been checked by the Department of Mysteries and have been found to be authentic. Since being checked three days ago, I have not let them out of my sight. Let us see only five people being forced through a detention with Madam Umbridge this year.”

Harry knew that his memory of being forced to use the Blood Quill would be last as it had already been decided it would make the most impact. He also knew that a few Muggle-born first and second years had agreed to allow their memories to be shown at the trial as long as their parents didn’t find out about it; they wanted to stay at Hogwarts, after all.

The viewing began with the second years, then a couple of first years, and finally Harry’s memories. Many people were screaming in outrage from the first and second years alone, but the moment they saw Harry in the final memory, almost the entire Wizengamot was on their feet in outrage, which only got worse when they heard he had been forced to write “ _I must respect my betters_ ” when it was obvious Dolores Umbridge was anything _but_ his better.

“Those children were misbehaving and needed to be punished,” Umbridge protested. “Many were telling vicious lies, and how else were they to learn? The Minister ordered me to Hogwarts to bring about order! The students weren’t doing what they should have been, so I was teaching them their places and a lesson! I was only following orders.” It appeared Madam Umbridge didn’t realize that her own words were just digging her grave that much deeper.

Samuel had Tonks add memories of various other things Umbridge had done at Hogwarts to the Pensieve. In addition he showed the various Decrees she had used her position to make which only added fuel to the fire that was being figuratively set beneath Umbridge. The woman who had gone pale and silent as the evidence was made known. It did not help when Minister Bones stood and spoke of other injustices that had been brought about by Umbridge’s actions and decisions.

In the end, the decision was unanimous: Guilty. Her sentence? A trip through the Veil in the Department of Mysteries.

Not even the most peaceful witches and wizards on the Wizengamot disagreed. They believed she earned nothing less than that after all she had done, most wishing they could do worse.

Before the toad could be led from the room, though, the students of Hogwarts in the audience were asked if they wished to have a single person speak for them all, both to the Wizengamot and Umbridge. Every head turned to Harry, who sighed but stood, jumping over the wooden banister in front of him to drop to the floor where Umbridge was, his knees bending to break his landing. He heard a few cries from the adults throughout the room until they saw he was perfectly unharmed by his short fall.

Once he was standing in front of Umbridge, Harry spoke to the Wizengamot, “Thank you for your decision. Believe me when I say you would be hard-pressed to find a single student from Hogwarts this past year _not_ pleased with her punishment.” He then turned to face the woman who had made Hogwarts a nightmare that his fifth year.

“Madam Umbridge, you took Hogwarts, a place that is like a second home to so many people in Magical Britain, and turned it into a prison. Our lives were full of anger and fear as we were forced to survive detention, docked points, a horrible Defense class, and you. It would not surprise me if many of the first years do not return after their experiences this past year. You made a place of dreams into a place of nightmares.

“I hope you’re pleased with the results of your actions.”

Harry then moved away from the woman, but then stopped and looked back at her, an odd gleam in his eye that only the students and his friends recognized. A slight smirk appeared on his lips before he spoke once more.

“By the way, did you enjoy your gifts as Headmistress?”

As Harry walked towards the stairs leading to his seat, a smirk on his face, he heard Umbridge scream in fear and outrage behind him.

The message had been received.


	2. Chapter One

“That was brilliant, Harry!” Blaise told Harry as they all sat around in the living room of Marauder Manor, most of the group laughing at Harry’s words to Umbridge as they couldn’t before.

“The look on her face when she realized you meant the pranks was priceless,” Theo agreed, barely understandable through her laughter.

“I felt one of her last thoughts should be about how I had been one of the ones pranking her, yet she couldn’t figure out,” Harry said, smirk in place and arms crossed, the way he was sitting showing his content.

“Best way to drive her crazy,” Susan had to say.

“Do you know what you kids need?” Sirius asked as his head popped through one of the entrances to the room. “A party!”

With that, Sirius disappeared. Moments later, all the house-elves of the Manor appeared holding cakes, crisps, cookies, Muggle soda, and other sweets and snacks from both worlds.

“THANKS SIRIUS!” they all screamed across the house at once on Theo’s amused signal. They heard something fall at their scream before the other adults in the house all began to tell Sirius off, though Harry had a feeling the adults were internally laughing at the teens’ antics.

The group then spent the next hour eating and chatting, a few on their Journals to tell those not at the trial, mostly the Muggle-borns, about what had occurred. Much laughter was heard from the living room as they celebrated their revenge on Umbridge.

…

As the group of teenagers was celebrating their revenge on the woman who had made their recently-finished school year a nightmare, Lord Voldemort was sitting on his throne in the recently-searched home of the arrested Death Eater Lucius Malfoy.

Lord Voldemort stared at the wall on the other side of the empty room, his fingers tapping the arms of his throne. He was thinking quite hard as his mind ran through all that had occurred in the past two weeks alone.

First, the Prophecy had been destroyed and a good portion of his Death Eaters captured, many of the best among them, and he had been finally revealed as alive in the process. Then Cornelius Fudge was fired, though he couldn’t complain as the man was a complete fool. Of course, Amelia Bones taking his place wasn’t really something Lord Voldemort wanted as she was quite capable, just as her first few days in office proved.

Not only did Lord Voldemort lose every single spy and Death Eater in the Ministry and Wizengamot, but those who were tempted to join him had been fired and suddenly wanted nothing to do with him. He had lost most of his support and would have to look more carefully for followers now, choosing from those with nothing to lose.

It did not help that Amelia Bones was changing laws left and right, creating a better fight force as fast as she could when he had lost much of his own. The giants and Dementors were on his side as well as most of the werewolves, but what good would they be without wizards to fight among them, creating fear and chaos in the Wizarding World?

No, Lord Voldemort did _not_ like how events had unfolded recently.

Everything all linked back to one source: Amelia Bones.

To stop the chance of his side weakening further, Lord Voldemort knew that he had to take care of the one leading the attack against him. Amelia Bones had to die.

“Bella!” he called, knowing she was in the room just next to where he sat, most likely waiting for his call.

“Yes, my Lord?” she asked while entering the room quietly, bowing at his feet as she reached him. She stayed that way, awaiting his orders.

“Rise, Bella,” he said softly, and she stood. “Amelia Bones must die.” Bella smiled a dangerous smile at those words. “Take who you need and use the information Lucius provided before his… capture to find her and kill her. Leave no evidence behind of the deed.”

“Yes, my Lord,” Bella said as she bowed and left the room quickly.

With Bella on the mission, Lord Voldemort was confident that Amelia Bones would be dead within the week.

Now he could go back to figuring out where he would recruit from with his main source gone.

…

Harry looked at Tracey, who stood beside him under his Invisibility Cloak, and she caught his eye. Both instinctually raised their hands to the pouches on their hips.

Gesturing with one hand, Harry pointed to one of the bedrooms on the floor that his friends slept in. This was the only floor they were allowed to do this sort of thing on after they had accidentally caught Amelia as she went to her bedroom for something.

Tracey nodded in agreement, and they both moved swiftly and at the same pace. It didn’t take them long to set up the potions and powders around the doorway, their eyes sparkling with mirth as they did so. Inside the room, Harry could hear some of his friends talking quietly, most likely planning how to make him and Tracey fall for one of their traps.

Hopefully this trap would remind the others why he, Tracey, and Ginny were the most feared in their weekly summer war games so that they always remembered what it was like to be in a warzone.

Stifling their laughter with their arms, Harry and Tracey did the same to a few other rooms before they backed down the hall to a certain spot they had put protective spells around so that only they could get in and the others couldn’t attack them there. Now they just had to wait for their friends to leave the rooms.

Luckily, they didn’t have long to wait before Draco was poking his head out of the first room and looking left and right to see if he could see anyone. His head then disappeared and he led Astoria, Daphne, Blaise, and Theo from the bedroom, supplies obvious on their belts. They moved quickly to Tracey’s room, where Harry and she had been not even ten minutes before.

It didn’t take long for others to start leaving their rooms, startling the group of Slytherins still setting up the trap. From there, spells began flying. Some were Stunned before they could even pull out their wands, others were hit with jinxes, and others slid back into the bedrooms to hide.

Still hidden, Harry and Tracey put up _Muffliato_ around themselves, a spell Harry had found in his mother’s various journals that his Head of House had actually created. It allowed them to burst out laughing without being heard by the others who hadn’t noticed that their spells would dissipate the instant they touched the charms around the pair.

About five minutes into the fight, everyone suddenly froze in place before collapsing to the ground, their muscles unable to move. Their bodies began changing colors and their hair was growing, shrinking, and making itself into fancy hairdos. They had absolutely no control over what was happening, and it was even affecting those that had already fallen in the fight.

As the effects began to wear off a good ten minutes later, Harry and Tracey stepped out of their protected area and pulled off the Invisibility Cloak, smirking at their friends with their arms crossed over their chests. Once able to move, their friends just sat up and looked at them in shock and worry.

“That’s what happens when you forget what we can do, with or without Ginny,” Harry said tauntingly.

“By the way, thanks for the hilarious pictures,” Tracey added, holding up a camera she had been using to photograph the prank. The film was in her pocket already, Harry knew.

Cries of outrage were heard from their friends as they realized what she meant, but there was nothing they could do.

“You all need to learn to expect the unexpected,” Remus commented from the stairs before he headed up towards where the master bedrooms were, leaving behind grumbling teenagers who were slowly standing up and removing the hexes on themselves.

“Maybe next week, guys, but the training room awaits us, now,” Harry called as he headed towards the stairs to go to his room and collect his weapons for more training.

…

Albus Dumbledore sat calmly at the head of the dining room table at Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. The rest of the table was full of adults all talking back and forth about recent events.

“Quiet,” Dumbledore requested, and silence fell on the room. “What information does everyone have about recent events?” Of course, Dumbledore already knew almost all that had been going on, but he needed to be sure there wasn’t something new he hadn’t heard about.

“Minister Bones has done quite a number on the Death Eaters, removing the chance of others joining in the process,” Arthur Weasley commented. “There have been many new promotions in the Ministry with so many arrested or fired. The Ministry has a completely different feel to it.”

“Have you been offered a promotion yet, Arthur?” Kingsley Shacklebolt asked.

“Not yet, but I’ve heard from others that my name has come up in many meetings for the Head position of a new department that has to do with cursed objects being sold on the black market now,” Arthur replied, and many at the table looked pleased that the man well-liked by almost all he met was going to be getting the recognition they felt he deserved.

“That’s excellent news, Arthur,” Dumbledore said. “Is there anything else that has been occurring?”

“Madam Bones has been working very closely with the new Director Samuel Davis in her office almost daily,” Nymphadora Tonks commented offhandedly, but Dumbledore sat up a bit straighter quite quickly.

“Samuel Davis, you said?” he clarified, and Tonks nodded in confusion.

Dumbledore’s mind was whirling with thoughts. Samuel Davis had quite a number of excellent connections, then, if he was working that closely with the Minister of Magic. It did not help Dumbledore’s feelings about the man to know that he was well thought of by Harry Potter, knowing that the boy trusted him well above most after having been rescued by his relatives by Samuel Davis. The man had also been Harry’s guardian for a time…

That was when the connection he had been trying to make for over a week finally clicked in Dumbledore’s mind.

“I believe I finally figured it out,” he said softly, but most of those in the room heard.

“Figured what out, Albus?” Minerva McGonagall asked, almost demanding the information from him.

Albus Dumbledore sighed before he replied, “I finally figured out how Harry Potter heard the Prophecy three years ago.” He expected a reaction from the Order as they knew that the prophecy they had been protecting for an entire year had to do with Harry and Lord Voldemort, though they didn’t know the exact wording of it.

“HE WHAT?!” many yelled. “We protected that all year!” others exclaimed angrily.

“Did we do all that guard duty for nothing?” Tonks demanded.

“How long have you known this?” McGonagall asked, her fury shown on her face. Next to her, Severus Snape was smirking in amusement.

“Well, he’s certainly gotten his revenge,” Snape said to the room, silencing the room as they turned to face him.

“Explain, Severus,” Dumbledore ordered. The Slytherin man just continued to smirk in amusement as he looked at everyone in the room. “Severus…” Dumbledore said in warning, and the man finally spoke.

“I warned all of you that Harry Potter would get revenge after you kidnapped him,” the man said softly, his voice heard by all despite its quietness. “While I still expect he holds resentment towards all of you because of last summer, this is just another way to get revenge. It would not surprise me if he knew that the Dark Lord would go after the Prophecy after hearing it for himself, and if he did, he probably put a fake orb in its place to trick everyone.”

“He did, indeed, mention that it had been a fake,” Dumbledore had to admit softly, earning many glares, but Snape drew the attention back to himself by snorting in amusement.

“That means he probably knew that we were wasting our time this entire year,” the Death Eater spy said. “He spent an entire month in these very headquarters with not only his amazing ability at magic but the Weasley twins’ and his girlfriend’s as well. They probably heard all about our guard duty, even if the Department of Mysteries was carefully not mentioned if at all possible, just in case the teenagers were listening in. Just hearing about guard duty would have been enough for Potter to know what we were speaking of knowing of the prophecy.

“He purposely kept the information from us so that we spent a year just wasting our time, all because he was angry at you for kidnapping him,” Snape finished as he settled back down in his seat, amused smirk still on his face. The room was in a stunned silence at his words.

“You seem to know an awful lot about this, Snape,” Alastor “Mad-Eye” Moody finally said to break the silence, looking at the man suspiciously.

“Potter is one of my Slytherins, one of the best in my House, and it is what any intelligent Slytherin would do,” Snape stated without fear of Moody’s glare. “Despite his qualities from each House, Potter is most definitely a Slytherin before anything else.”

“Yes, Harry is most displeased with me and showed it just a week ago,” Dumbledore sighed. “I just realized, however, that it was most likely Samuel Davis who took Harry to the Department of Mysteries to hear the prophecy.”

“So all of our hard work was for nothing!” one of the Aurors in the Order, Hestia Jones, exclaimed angrily, disbelief also coloring her tone.

“Not for nothing, Hestia, not for nothing,” Dumbledore said calmly. “By protecting the Department of Mysteries, we kept Voldemort’s attention away from recruiting and creating chaos, which gave us time to prepare for the war ahead.”

“But Albus, the Ministry did _nothing_ ,” one of the members reminded him.

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that…” Dumbledore muttered, remembering his conversation with Amelia Bones after the Third Task. “There could very well be preparations made in secret, just as we have done.”

There was no way for anyone to comment against that as no one knew whether or not he was right.

…

Minister Amelia Bones looked at the wizard sitting before her with a calculating look. She wasn’t exactly sure _what_ she felt when it came to the esteemed Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, not after all she had learned and seen over the past year alone.

“You requested the meeting, Dumbledore,” she stated calmly, allowing him to start the pace, even if this was taking place in her office.

“Amelia, you know much better than Cornelius did about the horrors that will be coming very shortly with Lord Voldemort back,” Dumbledore began, and Amelia fought the urge to roll her eyes as she nodded. “Now is the time for us all to stand together against Lord Voldemort as a united front.”

“Headmaster,” Amelia began after a momentary pause, “I _will_ lead the Ministry against Lord Voldemort, but I will _not_ follow your orders or pretend that I am standing behind you in this fight.”

Amelia had to control her reaction to Dumbledore’s shocked expression at her words. It appeared he hadn’t expected her to disagree with him and his suggestion. _As if!_ No, she wouldn’t pretend that she was in his pocket, not in this. She would be controlled by _no one_. Amelia Bones would work _alongside_ others, but never _for_ , and she knew that that was what Albus Dumbledore was insinuating.

“Amelia–” Dumbledore began to say, but Amelia cut him off before he could even begin to try to change her mind, which she knew he wouldn’t succeed at anyway.

“No, Headmaster. There is nothing you can do to change my mind. I know for a fact that you are not someone I’m willing to follow. Kidnapping a fourteen-year-old for no reason at all and not allowing him to return home when he asked! You’re lucky I don’t have your Order of the Phoenix _arrested_ for that.”

By the horrified look on Dumbledore’s face, Amelia suspected he hadn’t realized how correct Severus Snape was in his various warnings to the Order about Harry. The “Boy-Who-Lived” had many connections to some very high people, and it was time those connections began to show.

“You didn’t think I’d know about that, did you?” Amelia said evenly, though she only let a little of the contempt she was feeling into her voice, allowing her words to do the rest. “You should have listened to your Death Eater spy when he warned you last summer, Dumbledore, because Harry does, indeed, have many connections that could be very dangerous to you.”

“Amelia, I assure you, it was a complete misunderstanding on Mr. Potter’s part,” Dumbledore tried to say calmly, the sparkle in his eye returning, but Amelia knew the truth and was having none of it.

“It was not a misunderstanding as I heard Mr. Potter’s account first-hand after he was able to return home,” Amelia stated. “If that situation is an example of how you’re going to lead the war, I will not follow you in any way — nor will Harry. Either you and your Order will follow me, or you’ll be left out of this war without a care in the world from the rest of us. I’d make a choice soon, Dumbledore, because soon this war is going to explode and be quite fierce, and you might not have a chance to change your ways after it does.”

Amelia was pleased when Dumbledore recognized the dismissal and took his leave, his face worried and saddened by what he had heard. Hopefully it would be enough to change him for the better.

Only time would tell.

…

Bellatrix Lestrange took in the sight of the Muggle house before her, a slight sneer on her face. Lucius’ Intel claimed that this was the home of one Amelia Bones. With the various protections around the home, Bellatrix had to agree that this was most likely where the Minister of Magic, an ex-Auror, lived.

Looking at the curse-breakers trying to take down the wards as quietly and carefully as they could, Bellatrix had to try hard not to use her wand to speed them up. Their work took precise spells and actions, but it was trying her patience, having to wait this long to finally attack the woman.

“Hurry up!” she snarled, hearing the other Death Eaters behind her shuffling restlessly.

“We’re working as fast as we can without making errors, Lady Bellatrix,” one of the curse-breakers said as he turned slightly to work at a different angle.

“How long?” Bellatrix asked harshly.

“Ten, fifteen more minutes at the most, Lady Bellatrix,” another curse-breaker replied before he waved his wand at a protection charm.

Bellatrix had to hold in a snarl at the curse-breakers. After being there for an hour already, all of the fighting Death Eaters were anxious to begin the attack. She knew that it was only fear of her wrath that stopped any other them from attacking before she ordered them, knowing they would be dead before they could even reach the house.

Unfortunately, she was just as impatient as they were. She wanted to make her Master proud after the failure in the Department of Mysteries by killing Amelia Bones. If she didn’t know that a full-out attack would warn the Minister of Magic and cause even more problems, Bellatrix wouldn’t be bothering to wait for the protections to fall, but she had to exercise the little patience she had left to succeed.

“They’re down, Lady Bellatrix,” one of the curse-breakers said as the lights in front of the Death Eaters disappeared, all of the men who had been working on the protections falling to the ground from magical exhaustion after so much work.

“Very good,” she said softly. “Our Master will reward you well when we return. Use your Portkeys and inform him of your success.”

The various curse-breakers nodded tiredly before muttering the different activation words, disappearing from sight as their Portkeys pulled them away.

“Now, Death Eaters, let’s go teach the lovely Minister a lesson,” Bellatrix said, a somewhat savage smile on her face.

Leading her team into the nicely furnished home, Bellatrix looked around carefully. Something was wrong with the picture before her. Chairs were in place, a couch with a coffee table in front of it in the room, and there was even a small fire going, but something felt off. Where were the newspapers, paperwork, books, and other personal objects?

“Move quietly and find her,” Bellatrix hissed, heading up the stairs to try to find the woman’s bedroom.

When she found the room, she realized her thoughts from before appeared to be correct. Everything was quite neat and clean, almost too clean. No dust anywhere, furniture in place, bed made…

Bellatrix quickly checked her wardrobe and then dresser before snarling in withheld fury. They were empty!

Everything the woman owned besides the furniture was gone, taken away when she obviously moved from her home to a safer place. She had probably predicted an attack on her at home and unofficially found a new place to live, possibly even under the Fidelius Charm, leaving everyone but those few in on the secret to believe that she still lived here in this home.

Spinning on her heel, Bellatrix stormed out of the room and down the stairs to the living room, where she found her Death Eaters waiting for her.

“None of us found her, Lady Bellatrix,” a Death Eater reported.

“That’s because she isn’t here,” Bellatrix snarled. “She moved out, possibly even before she became Minister, leaving everyone to believe she still lived here as a trick. Our intelligence was wrong.”

There was muttering among the Death Eaters, and Bellatrix couldn’t blame them. The way their Master would react to this… Bellatrix knew they all had something to fear. Hopefully, though, he would put the blame on Lucius rather than them, for they had done everything perfectly except for the fact that their prey hadn’t been where she was supposed to be.

Either way, Bellatrix was furious, and she knew that, while her Master might be upset because he wanted this to be more of a stealth mission than an obvious attack, she had to do _something_ tonight.

“Leave and inform our Master of the problem,” she ordered. “I’ll join your shortly.”

Fearing both her and their Master, the Death Eaters hesitated, so Bellatrix drew her wand, and they all Portkeyed immediately.

Finally alone, Bellatrix left the home, standing outside of it and glaring. Aiming carefully, Bellatrix put the house on fire before launching the Dark Mark above the home, Portkeying out before the Aurors could arrive.

She had her Master’s wrath to return to at this failure.

…

**_DARK MARK HAS RETURNED!  
_** **_MINISTER OF MAGIC’S HOME ATTACKED AND BURNED!_**  
**_MINISTER NOT HOME AND ALIVE!_**

_In a startling attack, the Dark Mark was seen again above the Minister of Magic’s home. Amelia Bones was not home and has even admitted to have secretly moved house for fear of attack. It appears it was the correct move as her home was completely destroyed in the blaze of fire, now only ashes._

_You-Know-Who and his Death Eaters have begun their attacks yet again._ The Daily Prophet _encourages, with the backing of the Minister, the people to be cautious and to set up protections if they can because it is better to be safe than sorry._


	3. Chapter Three

Amelia made sure to make herself quite visible the day following the attack on her home, speaking to the press and allowing pictures to be taken of her alive in the Atrium of the Ministry. Of course, she didn’t go anywhere without at least two Aurors following her, just in case, and these Aurors weren’t known to be Aurors except to a few, so they would be a surprise defense if she was attacked.

However, they would be a surprise for only a little longer. Those residing in Marauder Manor had agreed that the second Auror Force should be made public knowledge within the week, though they would be introduced as Amelia’s idea, having been trained in secret over the past year at a secret location. No one would learn where they were trained, who trained them, or that there were more being trained there as they spoke, though most were freshly-graduated seventh years from Hogwarts.

Knowing there were more Aurors than thought would worry the Death Eaters while reassuring the public that they would be protected to the best of the DMLE’s ability. That was the best anyone could ask for, and hopefully it would be enough.

…

Samuel watched with an unreadable expression from behind and to the side of Amelia as she spoke to the press, two lines of Aurors in royal purple robes behind them. The robes were different from the normal red Auror robes, showing that these Aurors were from the second Force, trained differently and, in some ways, better than the first Auror Force.

Amelia explained that they had been training for the past year, since the Third Task when Lord Voldemort returned, at a secret training facility with different teachers from the normal force. They had been pushed through an intense training program that would make them the best they could be within a very short time, which Samuel knew was quite true as he had been the one to put them through it himself.

From the questions asked and the reactions of the various people in the Atrium, Samuel Davis could tell that seeing these obviously disciplined and battle-ready Aurors was relaxing to many. Of course, he could also tell it made the majority realize that they were truly at war and that they needed to prepare themselves to make it easier for those protecting them to do so.

“These men and women have sacrificed time and many other things to be sure they can protect our world, even knowing they could lose their lives doing this,” Amelia said once she had finished answering questions as a way to wrap this up. “It’s time for everyone else to do the same. Protect your homes and neighbors. Make it so that, when these men and women as well as the other Aurors get to the scene of an attack, they won’t find those they were sent to protect and save already dead. Prepare yourselves to defend your homes, friends, family, and loved ones, because Lord Voldemort is back, and he has no mercy for anyone not following him. If you protect yourself, you’re making it that much harder for him and that much easier for us.”

Amelia turned and walked away, and when she got to the lift that would take her back to her office, Samuel gave the order for the Aurors to return to base, where he knew they would be returning to practice battles as well as helping to train the newest recruits for the second Force.

Minister Bones had done her job, and now he had to join her in her office to continue doing his.

…

Harry sat with his Journal open in his lap, looking at the list of students using their Journals at that moment. He wasn’t surprised anymore when he activated his emerald-green Journal to see at least a third of the Hogwarts population of around three hundred students under the “ON” list of the Journals. It seemed quite a large number of the students used their Journals to make plans with friends or keep up on news about vacations rather than using owls, which wasn’t all that unusual given how much quicker it was.

As he slipped into conversations just to pick up on the topics quickly before leaving, Harry noted that some of the non-holiday-or-homework topics were the attack on Amelia’s home, the second Auror Force, training sessions being held in groups, and just the war overall. It was a bit saddening to see conversations about topics like that, but at least they were somewhat prepared for what was to come.

“Finding out what’s being talked about again?” Tracey asked as she sat down next to him on the couch he had claimed. Harry only nodded, closing his Journal and shrinking it before returning the emerald book to its leather cord around his neck. “Anything of interest going on that we don’t know about?”

“Trace, we _live_ with the Minister of Magic and the Director of the Magical Law Enforcement as well as members of the Wizengamot,” Harry said with a laugh. “We also have spies in the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. What _don’t_ we know once it occurs?”

“Good point, but you never know,” Tracey pointed out, and Harry laughed.

“True, true,” he said. “Nothing new, really. They’re mostly talking about the most recent events like the attack on Amelia’s old house and the second Auror Force. It seems it’s all big news that needs to be discussed until it gets old.” They both snorted at that. “What are the others up to?”

“Hermione is locked up in the library _again_ ,” Tracey stated. “I swear she’s going to read that entire room before we’re done with Hogwarts at this rate. Luna dragged Neville and Hannah outside to go look at the various gardens, supposedly looking for another creature. Daphne and Astoria are around somewhere with Draco and Blaise, though who knows what they’re up to.”

“No hope that Daphne and Blaise are snogging yet?” Harry asked with a grin, and Tracey rolled her eyes with a small smile.

“Not yet, Harry, and you know you should be thankful because they’d make us watch!” she reminded him, slapping him playfully on the arm. “Anyway, Susan dragged Theo and Justin down to the basement to swim. I actually think that’s where Daphne and Astoria dragged Blaise and Draco too, though I thought I saw weapons on them as well. Maya is outside watching Graham and Natalie run around as cats again, making sure none of the others decide to play rough with them… _again._ ”

“So, pretty much, everyone is all over, some training, some studying, and some enjoying themselves,” Harry summarized.

“Pretty much,” Tracey agreed.

“What should we do, then?” Harry asked, a small smirk beginning to form.

“Oh, I don’t know…” Tracey began slowly, reaching her arm behind her to lift up her shirt and reveal a pouch full of supplies to Harry. “I think they’ve lost their cautiousness over the past two days because we’ve become too distracted.”

“Exactly what I was thinking,” Harry replied as he lifted up the right side of his shirt to show that he, also, had his pouch with him. “I think we have work to do.”

…

“What happened this time?” Remus sighed as he heard screams from various places around the house and even outside, not even looking up from his book that he was reading in the kitchen.

“Harry and Tracey decided the others needed a reminder that they’re living in _Marauder_ Manor,” Samantha Greengrass reported from by the sink where she was making some tea.

“Again?” Daniella Davis asked with a sigh while shaking her head.

“At least they didn’t go after Sirius this time,” Remus stated, and then he regretted his words when he heard Sirius yell out, “HARRY! TRACEY!”

“I spoke too soon,” Remus muttered, and the women laughed quietly.

…

Harry and Tracey snickered as they slipped into Harry’s room, putting up protective charms on the door so that the others couldn’t get in for revenge on them. Once in there, they shared one look and burst out laughing.

“Did you see Sirius’ face when he realized every single set of clothes he owns is now a neon color while the ones he was wearing before are gone so he has to wear the neon clothes?” Harry gasped out between laughs.

“How about Draco’s face when he felt his head and figured out he was completely bald, let alone when he found a mirror and saw the top of his head is pink?” Tracey returned, still laughing.

“Hermione had to be the best, though,” Harry decided as he began to calm down, though remember this prank almost set him off again. “I mean, figuring out that she can’t touch a book because they move away from her… Her face was _priceless_!” That set them both off again.

“You do know she’s probably going to kill us when she finally sees us,” Tracey said.

“She’ll _try_ , you mean,” Harry retorted with an amused grin. “Hermione will have to, first, catch us, and then actually manage to hurt us.”

“One problem with that,” Tracey said slowly, and Harry saw her eyes widening slightly in fear.

“What?” Harry asked, a bit worried now.

“She’ll have everyone else on their side because of our pranks on them,” she whispered, and Harry froze for a moment before his mind became a whirlwind of ideas for how to survive this.

“We’ll need to stay in here until we can set up traps outside their rooms tonight, forcing them to listen to us until they agree not to retaliate for fear of us doing even worse things to them,” Harry decided, already moving to pull a sheet of Muggle paper and a pencil out of his desk so that they could make plans for their traps to stop them from being killed by their friends.

It was going to be a long but quite normal day and night in Marauder Manor.

…

It had been three and a half weeks since summer had begun, and Harry was with Samuel and Tonks as they brought him to where the second Auror Force was being trained at Davis Manor.

Those at Marauder Manor had finally agreed to Harry’s request of seeing the training again, mainly because they knew that part of the reason he wanted to go was to see some old friends from Hogwarts. Another reason was to see if there were new, fresh ways to train the Hogwarts Protectors that upcoming school year.

“Harry!” Angelina Johnson called as she caught sight of him, and heads turned quickly as they looked in his direction.

“Hey guys!” Harry replied as he waved a hand over his head, turning to his two escorts to see them nodding with grins. He took that as permission to race over to his friends, who all grinned and started asking how he was doing.

“Oh, using this as an excuse to get away from the fact that many people still wish to kill Tracey and me after our last round of pranks,” Harry said calmly, waving a hand as if it was no big deal, and they all laughed. “We hung them all upside-down from the ceiling until they agreed not to retaliate, but they’re still upset. Otherwise, I’m just training and keeping safe this summer as Voldemort begins to make his moves. Enough about me, though, how’s training?”

From what Harry understood, the freshly-graduated adults were working hard, already beating the Aurors who had been training under Samuel and Tonks for a full year with only an additional week and a half of training. Now they were being taught in two groups by the same retired Aurors who had taught Harry and Tracey the basics, switching teachers after three hours, and then taking a break to rest and eat before having mock-battles against the other second Auror Force members. While it wasn’t the same as training with Harry, Ginny, and Tracey, they all enjoyed it and were still learning quite a bit.

“Your training was a solid base for what we’re being taught now, allowing us to learn quite quickly,” one of the Ravenclaws mentioned quietly, though Harry heard it, even if he couldn’t tell who had said it.

“I’m glad it helped,” Harry said with a grin. “Now, is anyone feeling up to a duel? Perhaps four-against-one?”

Harry heard Samuel and Tonks laugh when all of their trainees suddenly looked very afraid of the idea, and he was having a hard time not snorting himself.

“Why not let them all duel you at once, Harry?” Tonks called from behind him, and he turned to raise an eyebrow in her direction before turning back to his friends, cocking his head to the right as he thought about it.

“Will that make you all feel better about dueling me?” he asked, and the Auror trainees in front of him all shared looks before he saw the change that said they accepted the offer of a duel, all of them against Harry. “Well, then, just let me go grab my bag. You might want to make a plan while I’m gone.”

With a final smirk, Harry turned and raced back to the house, Samuel and Tonks still snickering behind him. Once he got to where the Floo was, Harry grabbed his bag and headed back outside. Standing in the doorway so he could watch his friends, Harry pulled his sheathed, custom-made sword from his pocket and put it onto his belt after shucking off his robes and returning it to its proper size. He then began adding even more throwing knives to his person from his bag, strapping on a couple of fresh daggers in place of the two that he had to remove because of the basilisk venom in them.

Still on his arm was Slytherin’s Dagger, but he knew it wouldn’t be used, not during this fight. However, Harry wasn’t going to ever willingly remove that from his person except at night, and even then he left it under his pillow along with his wand holster.

Feeling properly ready for a duel, Harry placed his bag next to the doorway, his robe next to it, and walked back down to where his friends were now waiting.

“Who do you think is going to win?” he heard Tonks ask Samuel softly as he passed them.

“It depends if Harry uses that pouch on his belt or not to even the odds that their numbers put into their favor despite his training and ability,” Samuel replied just as softly. “If he does, he’ll probably win, but if he doesn’t, it will be too close to call until it’s all over.”

_Thanks for the vote of confidence_ , Harry thought as he snorted quietly just before he reached his friends.

“Well, are you ready?” he asked, and they all turned to see his sword, wand holster, and a few daggers. Some of his friends gulped slightly, but Harry knew they would still fight, knowing he would only maim them, never truly hurt them, let alone even get close to killing them.

“Ready,” Robert Weston said for the group, nodding in Harry’s direction. Harry returned the nod and backed a few paces back.

“On my count,” Samuel called. “Bow to your opponents.” Harry drew his wand and bowed to the group as they all bowed to him, none looking away from the other side of the duel. “Ready, set, begin!”

Harry jumped to the side the moment Samuel gave the signal, dodging the barrage of Stunners shot his way. As he dropped to the ground and rolled to the side before moving into a crouch, Harry felt more Stunners and Cutting Curses fly over him. With a grin, he realized all but one or two were using silent casting, which meant he was most certainly permitted to.

Aiming his wand at the ground as he jumped to the side, Harry thought a spell and watched as a chunk of earth near the trainee’s feet flew out and hit one of the trainees in the face. It was a spell quite similar to the ones Cedric, Fleur, and Viktor had taught during the snowball fight a year and a half before, except this time Harry had used earth rather than snow.

Using the spell a few more times while dodging, Harry managed to knock a person out when the earth he used hit her under the chin. Then, he let the fun begin.

Reaching down to the side of his leg, Harry pulled out three throwing knives at once, throwing them so fast that the others hadn’t even had a chance to see them. All three hit their marks, actually forcing one to drop his wand as the knife had hit his wrist while the other two had only hit their shoulders. His next knives were blocked by hastily conjured walls or by his targets dodging them when they saw his arm move in a throwing motion.

Grinning with some pride at their reaction and learning speed, Harry began firing Stunners and Cutting Curses silently, beginning to trap some of the trainees by also throwing knives at them until they got hit.

Unfortunately, Harry hadn’t noted a couple of his opponents moving around behind him; he barely dodged the Stunners they fired by pure instinct as he spun around, drawing his sword to catch the one that had almost hit him. Quickly disarming Alicia of her sword, he stunned her and then hit Angelina the next moment before pointing his wand over his shoulder to use a shield against the large number of Cutting Curses.

Muttering under his breath about being stupid and losing his touch, Harry dropped to the ground while his left hand moved to his pouch, pulling out a vial full of a black gas. Throwing it in the direction of his friends, he grinned as one of them used a Cutting Curse in hopes of destroying what they thought was a potion before it hit anyone.

Unfortunately for them, Harry had wanted that as he watched the gas suddenly thicken and move to cover them all, making it impossible to see. Still grinning slightly, Harry moved into the darkness, launching Stunners at every movement or sound he heard or sensed, knowing that he had no teammates to be worried about. Bodies hitting the ground with thumps showed that this tactic had been a good one.

Suddenly, a wind blew the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder that the Weasley twins had happily provided Harry and his friends with out of the clearing. Around Harry, there were only six left standing, the rest knocked out by his Stunners.

Ducking as spells were launched his way, Harry hurried to throw a few knives and use a few Stunners, hoping to win this duel before the remaining few managed to revive their friends. Luckily, he had moved fast enough that only two were revived before he knocked them all out.

Looking down at himself, Harry groaned slightly. The adrenaline as well as his concentration had blocked from his mind the feel of small cuts all over his body from Cutting Curses he had been nicked by. He dodged Stunners faster than Cutting Curses, knowing that a few nicks weren’t so bad. Of course, it didn’t really help that Cutting Curses were long, yellow spells that were harder to dodge by just moving from side to side as they covered just a long range.

Clapping caught his attention, and he looked around to see all the second Auror Forces Aurors there in their purple robes, plus his two original teachers after his second year, Tonks, and Samuel all clapping.

Grinning slightly, Harry began to heal himself while the audience went around reviving his friends. Finally, his body healed and clean, Harry repaired his clothes of the small cuts, looking just as fresh as he had before the fight, even the sweat gone from his body.

“Well done, Harry,” Tonks complimented as she walked over to him. “That, hopefully, reminded these trainees that they still have _plenty_ they can learn.”

“Tonks, all you have to do is mention my friends and me to them and they’ll remember,” Harry said with a laugh.

Around them, his friends were nodding sheepishly while Samuel laughed with Tonks. The other Aurors were looking at him with a bit of awe and shock, probably because they had never seen anyone fight like him before.

“You’re doing well,” Harry commented to his friends as they finished cleaning and healing themselves and joined them. “You almost caught me more times than I care to admit.” The older young adults all chuckled at his words while looking pleased that they had worried him during the fight, even if he hadn’t shown it. “My advice is to start asking the twins for supplies and learning to fight with them as well as with others using them on you, like I did just now. Think of the craziest, most ridiculous battle scenario, and fight in it. In the end, it’ll give you the ability to not only adjust to any situation but also make you think outside the norm while in battle. It’ll help; trust me.”

Harry saw that the Aurors around him were taking in his advice and realizing it was quite good just as much as his friends were, so he grinned slightly.

“You know, I believe that’s part of the reason whatever house my friends and I stay in is usually viewed as a warzone,” Harry mentioned conversationally as he smiled innocently in Samuel’s direction. The man rolled his eyes at Harry’s look. “I mean, I’m sure I remember the Director over there always trying to get the pranks and spells to stop destroying his and Sirius’ home. It was always quite chaotic, but it certainly made for some… _interesting_ battles.”

Harry could hear Tonks snickering while Samuel was shaking his head in amusement. They both knew that Harry was suggesting ideas that would drive all not involved insane while teaching those involved. Still, they couldn’t help but be amused, even knowing they were the most likely to be driven insane.

“Harry, my friend, I believe some of us need to have a talk with you,” Robert Weston claimed as he went over to Harry and threw an arm over the amused fifteen-year-old’s shoulders to lead him to where the others were waiting.

Behind him, Harry heard a conversation take place as he was pulled away from the Aurors to the trainees.

“We’re going to be doomed after today, aren’t we?” one of the Aurors asked.

“Would it scare you if I told you that that was only a small portion of what Harry can do?” Samuel asked, and Harry could feel his eyes boring into the back of his head.

“We’re doomed,” a few of the Aurors claimed together with moans and groans.

It took all of Harry’s self-control not to snicker.

…

Albus Dumbledore stood in the little shack that had once housed the Gaunt family. He was completely and utterly baffled by what he had found. There were the obvious signs of Dark Magic that had protected the building at one point, but then he found things that informed him they had been completely taken down almost three years before. That left him with a problem.

_Who took down Voldemort’s protections, why did they do it, and where in the world was the Horcrux?_

…

“Anyone else getting bored stuck in the same house, no matter how large and full of things to do it is?” Theo asked just a few days before Harry’s birthday as all the teens took a bit of a break from their water fight in the pool that involved splashing, Muggle water guns, and Animagus forms.

“I’ve been thinking that for over a week,” Justin claimed from where he was floating in the water with his eyes closed, Neville pushing him slowly around the obstacle course the other teens made by staying still in the water.

“We need to find a way out of this house,” Harry decided as he finished refilling all the water guns and placing them at various points around the pool for easy access, over forty of them in total.

“Unfortunately, the adults will say it’s too dangerous and make us stay here,” Susan sighed as she floated in one place, staring up at the ceiling.

“Is there anywhere we can go that’s not a house but is still safe?” Hermione asked, always the logical one.

“The Muggle world would be safer than the Magical,” Natalie said helpfully from where she and Graham were playfully pushing one another with Maya watching them out of the corner of her eyes.

“Hey, Trace!” Harry called to over as she was on the other side of the large pool. Tracey’s dirty-blond head turned in his direction, blue eyes meeting green, the latter sparkling with an idea. “How’d you like to go to an amusement park for our birthdays?”

“Think we can pull it off?” she asked as her eyes began to shine happily with the idea.

“Might just manage it,” Harry decided. “We’ll have to ask. Now, let’s get back to the water war!”

Harry snagged the largest and strongest water gun from where it lay beside him, diving under the water quickly to sneak up on Hermione and use the water gun right on the back of her head. In an instant, the others were in motion, laughter and screams echoing around the basement.

…

“An amusement park, eh?” Sirius asked as the teens stood around the living room with Harry and Tracey in the middle, asking the adults for it as a birthday gift, almost begging.

“It might be possible to pull that off,” Samuel mentioned quietly. The teens began to cheer, but they quieted when Amelia raised a hand.

“That’s only if Voldemort doesn’t do something that makes us change our minds, remember,” she said, and the teens nodded, a lot more serious, though they were still excited about the chance to go to an amusement park.

“Now, shoo, and let the adults figure out which park to take you to,” Daniella said with a smile.

Cheering happily, the kids left the house altogether, changing into Animagus forms to run around outside.

 


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This is the chapter with mentions of rape/non-con. This is also the chapter with the most detail of violence this story will include. (Later chapters will have violence and death but none as detailed as this one.) If this triggers and/or bothers you too much to read, SKIP THE SECOND (MARKED) SECTION. I will put a summary of the section at the bottom so you get the necessary information without all the details.

Lord Voldemort looked down at the small village that was just down the hill. It was an all-Muggle village and a perfect place to allow his Death Eaters to do as they pleased for a few hours.

“Go down there and do anything you wish,” he informed his Death Eaters quietly, and he saw many grinning in anticipation for what was to come. “Remind the world what the Death Eaters can do. I expect no resistance.”

The Death Eaters happily Apparated down to the village, ready to accept their reward.

**...WARNING: Possible Triggers Ahead...**

Euan Abercrombie was in his bedroom on the second floor of his home after dinner when he felt something odd outside. For some reason, it made his magic, which had been trained for a year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry with him in Gryffindor as his year’s leader, twinge slightly, as if other magic was nearby.

Standing up from his bed where he had been reading a book, his shrunken Journal hanging from the leather cord around his neck, Euan went to the window of his bedroom and looked outside. What he saw there was something he would _never_ forget, not for his entire life.

Adults in black robes and white or silver masks were outside in the village he lived it, Apparating in before each one chose a home to enter, wands flashing in the darkness of night. These were Death Eaters, and by the screams echoing throughout the village, they were already enjoying themselves.

Rushing to his bedside table, Euan opened it with a rough pull and grabbed his wand. He then went to his trunk, in which he had never unpacked his school things except for his Muggle clothes, and quickly threw in as many clothes and special things from his room as he could. Slamming it shut and locking it, Euan tapped the trunk with his wand to activate the charm on it so that it shrunk to the size of a matchbox and was as light as one, using no magic as it was built in.

Slipping the trunk into his pocket, Euan then ran down the stairs, yelling at the top of his lungs, _“MUM! DAD! LIZ!”_

He raced into the kitchen, where his younger, non-magical sister Elizabeth was helping his Muggle parents do the dishes after dinner. They had heard the screams and were listening, but they didn’t understand what they really were. All three had turned at his entrance, taking in his scared appearance and the wand in his hand.

“Euan, I thought you knew not to even have your wand with you except at school just to be sure you don’t use it,” his mother said, her face stern.

“Mum, it doesn’t matter now! We have to get out of here!” Euan yelled, shocking all three members of his family; he was never really like this. “Those screams are being caused by wizards attacking the village; I’m allowed to use magic if I have to, but we need to get out of here!”

“Euan, explain yourself!” his father said, not moving an inch even as Euan put his eight-year-old sister on his back before trying to pull his parents from the room.

“There’s no time!” Euan exclaimed, looking down the hall to see the lights coming nearer in the living room window. “They’re getting closer!”

“Euan, put your sister down and explain yourself this instant!” his father yelled, and Euan froze, realizing that, because he hadn’t explained the war to his parents, they might die.

“Liz, get off,” Euan said softly, bending down enough for her to slip off before he went to the kitchen table. As he walked there, he pulled the Journal from around his neck and returned it to normal size, not even bothering to sit down as he opened it, activated it, and opened a conversation with Harry, who was thankfully using his Journal. Putting his pencil in place, Euan began to talk really quickly.

_Euan: Harry! I need help right now! I haven’t explained the problems in our world to my parents, and now Death Eaters are attacking our village!_

_Harry: Euan, slow down, take a deep breath, and tell me where you live so I can get help._

Euan took a deep breath and gave Harry the name of his village. He watched his Journal as Harry spoke to some people and told them to send Aurors there right away.

_Harry: Euan, help is coming. Can you protect your family until the Aurors get there? Five minutes, ten at the most, Euan._

_Euan: I can try, Harry, but please, if they get to me before then, promise me you’ll find a way to stop this from happening to someone else._

_Harry: I will, Euan, but you’ll be saved before too long. Just protect your family until help arrives._

_Euan: Got it._

Euan then closed his Journal, shrunk it again, and replaced it on the necklace around his neck, his family staring at him in shock. Knowing this would surprise them even more, Euan brought out his trunk, returned it to normal size in the middle of the kitchen, and retrieved his sword and dagger before returning the trunk to his pocket. The sword and dagger were both quickly attached to his belt as he held his wand tightly in his hand, ready to fight for his family.

“Mum, Dad, Liz, there’s quite a bit I haven’t told you about the Wizarding world because it would scare you and keep you from allowing me to go to Hogwarts when I _have_ to go there, but right now, you _have_ to trust me or we’ll all die,” Euan said, looking at all three of them, his gaze hard. “I’ve been learning to fight all year from older students, and it’s time I use what I know to protect you. Please, go upstairs and stay there no matter what noises you hear from down here.”

Liz looked at Euan with a trust-filled look, ran to her older brother, hugged him, and ran upstairs to her room, probably to hide in the closet, or even to their parents’ room and closet. Next Euan’s mother went up to him and gave him a hug before going to the entrance to the kitchen and waiting for her husband. Finally, Euan’s father hugged his son, a look of pride as well as sadness on his face. Both of them went upstairs quickly, and Euan knew they realized this wasn’t their world right now, so they had to let Euan handle it despite his being only twelve.

Just then the front door to the house was blasted apart, and Euan gulped before pulling all his Gryffindor courage together and moving into the hallway to stop the Death Eaters from getting up the stairs.

_“STOP_!” he yelled before they went upstairs. Two Death Eaters in the doorway spotted him.

“Ooh, look at what we have here,” one of them said. “It appears our Master was wrong; there’s a little boy who thinks he can fight us even though he’s probably just going into his second year now.”

Euan waited no longer, firing a Disarming Charm at the Death Eater who was talking; the man barely blocked it. Moving forward, Euan continued to fire off Disarmers and Stunners, two of the main offensive spells he had learned and could use with just a whisper.

The Death Eaters took him more seriously, returning fire with Cutting Curses and even the green light of the Killing Curse. Euan just dodged as best he could, drawing his dagger with his left hand and cutting the Death Eater who had been taunting him before in the arm.

“Argh!” he yelled out in pain as the dagger went deep. “Yaxley, just go upstairs and find the boy’s family. I’ll handle him.”

“Got it,” the other Death Eater grunted, heading towards the stairs.

_“NO!_ ” Euan yelled in fury, slashing his wand instinctively as pure magic shot out of it, hitting the Death Eater Yaxley in the back and sending him flying into the stairs, groaning in pain.

Unfortunately, Euan took a Cutting Curse to the cheek for that and had to pay more attention to the Death Eater in front of him than Yaxley. Dodging and trying to get close enough to cut the man with his dagger again or perhaps even use his hand-to-hand training, Euan didn’t hear Yaxley moving up the stairs until he heard his mother’s screams of pain.

_“MUM!_ ” Euan screamed, his head turning towards the stairs in an instant, his body dodging the spell launched at him instinctively.

With a growl of fury, Euan launched another blast of magic, this time at the other Death Eater, sending the man flying into the wall by the doorway to his home. Euan then jumped forward and kick him in the crotch — hard. He then beat the man as much as he could with his fists and feet, bloodying him up to let out his fury and fear. Using his dagger, Euan cut up the man’s face and destroyed his wand. Finally, Euan tied him up in ropes.

Turning, Euan ran up the stairs two at a time, charging down to his parents’ room, hoping beyond hope that they were alive. The sight that met him would haunt him in his nightmares for the rest of his life.

His father’s body was completely mutilated, his blood coloring the ground around him. Liz was also dead, some of her blood mixing with their father’s. The worst part, though, was seeing the Death Eater Yaxley actually raping his mother and obviously enjoying himself greatly, moans and groans filling the room even as his mother was silenced so her screams couldn’t be heard anymore.

As Yaxley finished, he heard Euan and turned to see the pale and almost sick twelve-year-old standing in the doorway, bloody dagger in his left hand and wand tightly held in his right. Grinning happily, Yaxley stayed where he was but picked up his wand.

“Your mother was mighty fun, boy,” Yaxley said with pure happiness and lust coloring his voice. “Now, though, I’m done with her.”

Standing, his pants and trousers still around his ankles, Yaxley pointed his wand at Euan’s mother and uttered, “ _Avada Kedavra._ ” There was nothing for Euan to do but watch as his mother died in front of him.

“Did I mention your sister was just as good as your mother, if not better?” Yaxley asked with a grin.

Furious, scared, sick, grieving, and completely numb, Euan screamed and watched as, for the third time that night, pure magic flew from his wand. This time, it was more powerful than either time before, sending Yaxley into the wall on the other side of the room, completely unconscious, his wand snapping in two as it hit the wall.

Euan raced to the man, beating him up and cutting up his arms, legs, face, and torso, though never able to kill the man who had killed his parents and sister, raping both of the women before doing do. Tears were falling down his bloody face as he hurt the man who had basically ruined his life, his emotions so messed up that he couldn’t even think.

Finally, though, Euan felt a calming hand on his arm and spun around, afraid it was another Death Eater. Instead, Euan was faced with the sight of Harry Potter.

Dropping his wand and dagger, Euan jumped at Harry, hugging the older boy around the waist tightly and crying into his chest. Euan could feel Harry’s hand rubbing his back in soothing circles as he wept, his innocence completely shattered in one night.

Feeling himself falling to sleep from the exhaustion of all that had happened as his tears lessened, Euan let it take him, preferring the darkness to what really surrounded him.

**...Possible Triggers Done...**

Harry felt Euan fall asleep against him and slowly fell to his knees, taking Euan with him.

The Death Eater before them was still unconscious and bound, so Harry wasn’t worried, especially as he knew Aurors were in the house as he sat there with the poor, young Gryffindor in his arms, tears and blood still covering his face.

Harry reached into Euan’s pocket and found the boy’s trunk there, so he left it where it was. Putting Euan’s wand with his own in his wand holster, Harry sheathed the dagger on Euan’s belt before lifting the twelve-year-old in his arms, cradling him to his chest.

Looking around the room, Harry was disgusted and horrified by what he saw, and he knew Euan would be forever changed, especially if his guess was correct and he had seen his mother being raped before she was killed. No, this young boy in his arms would now be a young man way too early, just as Harry was.

Sighing, Harry carried Euan from the bedroom and downstairs to the living room where Samuel was waiting for him. He had arrived at the house, taken one look in the master bedroom, and returned to Marauder Manor for Harry, knowing that he was the best person to take care of Euan after all of this. Harry was thankful that Samuel had done so, no matter how much he knew this would be in his nightmares the next time he slept. Euan needed him.

“Grimmauld Place or Marauder Manor?” Harry asked Samuel quietly, the other Aurors going upstairs now that Harry had brought Euan from the room.

“Grimmauld only until we can have Samantha tell him the secret, though keeping him at Grimmauld might be a better idea…” Samuel replied a bit thoughtfully, but Harry shook his head.

“He needs friends, people he knows, and we both know you won’t let me stay at Grimmauld for more than tonight to watch over him,” Harry said. “No, he comes to Marauder Manor, even if it means letting him in on a few secrets. Euan has no one left anymore, Samuel, so we’ll let him live with us.”

“Very well,” Samuel agreed, pulling out a napkin and handing it to Harry. “You know the phrase, so go put him to bed and keep him safe. I’ll send Samantha over in the morning, sooner if I can. Tracey is probably already there if she thinks anything like you.”

Nodding, Harry spoke the activation phrase and was pulled to Grimmauld Place, Euan in his arms. Harry landed on his feet, Euan still asleep in his arms, in the front room of his old home.

It only took moments for Harry to hear others rushing toward him, so Harry stayed there, not letting the boy holding onto the front of his shirt like a lifeline out of his arms. If Euan needed Harry, he would have Harry.

“Merlin,” Harry heard someone gasp softly, and he looked up to see all of the residents of Marauder Manor crowding the hall in front of him. Grimacing at them, he used his head to gesture for them to move, and they did so, allowing Harry to walk up to his old bedroom.

Placing Euan on his bed, Harry pulled out his wand and cleaned the boy off, healed him, and changed his Muggle clothes into pajamas. Harry then pulled the quilt over Euan before settling down next to him on the bed, rubbing Euan’s brown hair with his hand softly.

In his mind, he could remember the hazel eyes that had bored into his own after Euan spun around at his touch. They had been haunted, full of pure grief and fury and fire and ice. To see those eyes and remember the challenging look Euan had given him on the Hogwarts Express not even a year ago when he, Harry, had told Euan’s compartment that their House didn’t matter as he would still help them all was so very painful, knowing that Euan’s eyes would forever be different.

“What happened?” Harry heard Tracey ask quietly, and he looked up to see his friends all in different positions around the room, most sitting in different styles on the floor while Tracey knelt by Harry’s side at the bed.

“Death Eaters attacked his village, as you heard,” Harry began softly, his voice carrying to the others but not waking Euan. “Two entered his house, and Euan fought them, his family upstairs.” He continued his tale, still seeing the gruesome scene in his mind’s eye as he recounted it. He finished his tale by saying, “When I grabbed his shoulder, he spun around, and the look in his eyes… He had been crying and jumped at me, crying into my chest for a very long time before he fell asleep.”

Harry fell silent then, looking down at the poor boy next to him, his young face scrunched up in fear and anger, most likely having a nightmare about what had just occurred. The room was full of tension after the story had been told, but there was no way to break it, really. It had been a horrible thing, and the lone survivor was with them now, scarred for life.

When Euan woke up, things were going to get very hard very fast.

…

Harry was woken suddenly by a kick in his leg, and his eyes opened to see Euan fighting the blankets that Harry was sitting on, kicking and punching them with his mouth open in a silent scream, obviously in the middle of a nightmare.

Placing a hand on Euan’s shoulder, Harry tried to shake him awake, to stop the nightmare. Euan woke with a gasp, sitting straight up, eyes wide and full of fear.

“Easy, Euan; it’s just me, Harry,” Harry said in a calming voice. It was probably four in the morning, and everyone had gone to bed, Harry staying with Euan for when this happened.

Euan’s head turned so fast to face Harry that the older boy was surprised his neck didn’t crack. All Harry could do was watch as the young Gryffindor’s confused eyes slowly widened while the memories hit him, tears forming in the hazel eyes. Euan didn’t even have to ask if it was real, the fact that he was with Harry was all the proof he needed.

Harry opened his arms, and Euan wrapped his arms around Harry again, crying into his chest. Just as he had only hours before, Harry rubbed the boy’s back soothingly, whispering calming words in his ear to try to help him.

“Mum… Dad… Liz…” Harry could hear Euan sobbing. Harry just held him.

For a long time Harry didn’t even bother to keep track of it as he rubbed Euan’s back while whispering calming words into his ear. Slowly, Euan calmed, though Harry couldn’t be sure if it was from lack of tears, exhaustion, or being calmer. He suspected one of the former two, not the latter.

“Did — did I —” Euan whispered softly, his voice raw from his tears. Harry understood his question instantly and shook his head.

“No, Euan, you didn’t kill them, though they’ll probably never forget you with the wounds you gave them,” Harry told the twelve-year-old. “You did so well against two adult wizards, fighting them the best you could.”

“It wasn’t enough!” Euan cried out, his hands forming fists in his frustration. “I wasn’t good enough to save my family! They’re all gone, and it’s _my_ fault!”

“Euan!” Harry called, making the young boy stop and turn his face towards Harry. The Slytherin looked at his face, taking in the tear tracks on his cheeks and the haunted look in his eyes.

“It is _not_ your fault, Euan,” Harry said sincerely. “The Death Eaters are the ones who killed your family, not you. You did not mutter the words that killed them, you did not order for their deaths, _you_ did not harm them in any way! The blame for their deaths rests with the Death Eaters and Voldemort, _not yourself_. Euan, you, a twelve-year-old boy, did all you could to try and save your family, beating two Death Eaters soundly in the effort.

“Maybe it wasn’t enough, but it was _all_ you could do, Euan! You tried your best, which is a lot better than most adult wizards could do, let alone one your age! I know this doesn’t help the guilt and pain you’re feeling, but it’s the truth, and you’ll come to recognize it as such once the grief begins to numb.” Harry held both of Euan’s shoulders in his hands, making the younger boy look him in the eye as he said all of this.

“How do you know?” Euan asked Harry quietly, sounding like a lost little boy who needed help finding his way.

“Because I went through the exact same thing after Cedric died at the graveyard during the Third Task,” Harry told Euan.

“Really?” he asked, his eyes becoming just a little less conflicted.

“Really,” Harry agreed. “It’s going to be hard in the beginning, but you’ll have me and those staying with me to help you whenever you need it, Euan. We’re all here for you and want to help you through this. Anything you need, you just ask for it.”

Euan was silent, his eyes looking at the green comforter that covered his legs, fingers grasping at it just slightly. Harry let him think, knowing better than most that Euan would need patience and quiet at times to come to terms with everything.

“Can — can you stay with me right now?” Euan asked hesitantly, his head raising just enough for Harry to see the fear on his young face. “I’m afraid to sleep.”

“I wasn’t planning on leaving you alone, not after all this,” Harry told Euan while placing a hand on his knee. “If you need to, you can stay in my room so that you’re not alone.” Euan nodded to show he understood, looking around the room for the first time since waking up.

“Whose room is this?” he asked quietly, and Harry’s mouth twitched on one side.

“Mine,” he stated easily, and Euan’s head turned to look at him, eyes slightly widened in shock.

“This is _your_ room?” he gasped, looking around again even more closely.

“Well, this used to be my room,” Harry amended. “We moved to a new, better protected home at the beginning of last summer after Voldemort’s return. Still, my room at the new house is similar to this one, just larger and with a different ceiling.”

“This is an amazing room,” Euan said softly. He looked up at Harry, his face showing a little worry along with hesitancy. “Are you sure I can stay with you in either room?”

“I don’t mind at all, and I think we’d all prefer it to know that you have someone there for you, just in case. Please, stay with me for the summer and put us all at ease.” Harry knew that making it a request would make it easier for Euan to accept.

“Thank you,” Euan said, and Harry understood that he had accepted the offer and was grateful for it. “I do have a question…”

“Yes?” Harry prompted, wondering what Euan would ask.

“My house,” Euan began slowly, “do you know what’s going to happen to it?” Harry sighed slightly as he remembered what Euan’s home had looked like when he had arrived before thinking about the question, mostly going on past conversations about Auror procedure spoken about at the Manor.

“If the Aurors follow procedure, they’ll take pictures of your home, then clean it up so that it looks like nothing happened,” Harry said. “As you’re a minor, Minister Bones will most likely take control of it and use Ministry funds to pay off the mortgage so that you can decide whether or not to keep or sell it when you turn seventeen. It’ll be protected by enchantments until then.”

“Will I be able to visit?” Euan asked. “To gather some things, I mean.”

“I’ll talk to Samuel, but that could be arranged, I suppose,” Harry said. “Should I assume you’ll tell us when you’re ready to go back?”

Euan nodded, tears forming in his eyes again, no doubt remembering the blood and destruction that had been all around his home by the end of the fight. Harry just opened his arms, allowing Euan to crawl into them again and cry.

The young Gryffindor slowly fell asleep, tears still covering his cheeks and his body relaxing against Harry. Harry knew that Euan trusted him like an older brother, especially after all that had happened. He only hoped he could live up to that standard as it was going to be a long month now.

…

Lord Voldemort was furious as one of his Death Eaters reported Yaxley and Smith being captured by Aurors, all because of a preteen from Hogwarts who had escaped his notice as the boy was Muggle-born.

Somehow, a young boy who had just finished his first year at Hogwarts had _beaten_ two of his best Death Eaters. Now he was down two Death Eaters that he couldn’t really afford to lose as he knew that the Aurors wouldn’t leave even a single chance of a breakout, not after Bones had spoken to the goblins about helping them protect Azkaban without the Dementors.

No, Lord Voldemort now had to play an even more dangerous game when it came to this war… He would take a break for the next two weeks with the attacks, forming plans for the raids so that they would be even more successful.

Yes, that was what he, Lord Voldemort, would do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Euan Abercrombie, the muggle-born Gryffindor first year from Harry's fifth year, notices Death Eaters in the area and contacts Harry via Journals so that aurors are sent. However, the Death Eaters are faster than the aurors. Euan manages to convince his parents and younger sister to go upstairs while he faces off against the two Death Eaters with his HP training. One of the Death Eaters slips past him, and when he hears his mother screaming, his magic reacts and knocks out the one he's facing. Upstairs, he finds his father dead, his sister raped and killed, and his mother being raped. Yaxley (the Death Eater) kills his mother upon seeing him, and Euan reacts as only a grieving, horrified child can and knocks him out. He's still kicking Yaxley when Harry arrives and pulls him out of it, Euan crying himself to sleep.
> 
>  
> 
> I apologize if this triggered anything, but this is war, and dark events take place in war. I tried not to be too graphic when writing this. However, there are more raids later in the story, though none ever as detailed as this. Be prepared for darker times, because, guys, the Wizarding world is at war.


	5. Chapter Five

Tracey watched from beside her father as Harry, Graham, and Natalie began to lead Euan around Marauder Manor.

The poor boy hadn’t let Harry out of his sight for more than the time it took to take a shower and use the toilet since last night. He was still scared and full of pain from the attack, his shoulders slumped even as he looked around the home in awe.

“That poor boy…” Tracey’s mother said as she walked up to Tracey and her father. Tracey glanced up into her mother’s dark blue eyes to see the pain in them, most likely mirrored in her own, lighter blue eyes.

“It’s going to take time and patience to help him,” Tracey agreed, turning back to see Harry lead Euan in the direction of the stairs, most likely to show him the bedroom they would be sharing for a little while. “It’ll be a group effort without a doubt.”

All three Davises fell silent, moving into the living room to sit down. Tracey had a question to pass onto her father for Harry. Both of them had figured it would be easier than asking it in Euan’s presence, which would be the only way to ask it if Harry was the one to do it.

“Euan was asking about his home and things,” Tracey finally said, looking at her father. “He’s not ready yet, but there will be a time before term starts when he will want to go back to his home, both for closure and ways to remember his family.” Her father sighed as he nodded in understanding.

“Amelia has already claimed that the mortgage will be paid off and had the basic wards put around it,” he told Tracey. “The goblins agreed that if a Muggle-born’s family died but the witch or wizard lived, all funds would be exchanged for Galleons and placed in Gringotts for free with the goblins investing it to help the child. Euan’s home will remain his until he is seventeen and decides what he wants to do with it.”

“And the things inside the house?” Tracey prompted.

“Will be left alone until Euan says otherwise,” her father stated. “If he wishes, the goblins are willing to transfer everything into his new vault once the exchange is complete tomorrow, but I suspect he will want to see his home as it is before doing that.”

“When he’s ready, will Aurors bring him there?” Tracey’s mother asked, and Tracey knew her mother was feeling quite sympathetic for Euan and wanted to help.

“I’ll have a complete guard for him and whomever he wants with him within an hour of his asking,” her father promised.

“Thanks,” Tracey said. “I’ll pass that information onto Harry so that he can tell Euan when he’s ready for it.”

“Also tell Harry to keep Euan away from today’s newspaper,” her father sighed as Tracey began to stand. Tracey’s head spun to look at her parents, who both looked sad and worried. Her face was full of surprise and confusion. “Here.” Tracey was passed a copy of the Daily Prophet by her father.

Glancing down at the front page, she instantly knew what they meant. A picture of a destroyed village covered half the page, and the headline below it didn’t help either.

******_MUGGLE TOWN DESTROYED!_ **   
**_MUGGLE-BORN SECOND YEAR LIVED THERE!_ **   
**_SECOND YEAR’S FAMILY KILLED!_ **

By the article Tracey skimmed, she had a feeling Euan was going to be getting quite a few condolences the moment he signed onto his Journal, which was another thing she would have to warn Harry about before it happened.

“Why did the _Daily Prophet_ actually publish this?” she demanded, throwing the paper onto the coffee table. “How did they get away with using Euan’s name, let alone giving out details about what happened?”

“We didn’t stop them in time,” her father sighed, his head bowed. “Amelia is already demanding answers from them, and I suspect they’ll be paying Euan quite a bit of money for doing this, especially as he’s a minor and doesn’t need this, but the damage is done.”

“Yes, it is,” Tracey snarled. “Wait, did they ever pay Harry for all they wrote about him over the past year?”

“Actually, they did,” a voice said from behind them, and Tracey turned to see Sirius standing in the doorway. “I received the letter as his guardian, notifying me that a large amount of gold had been added to his family vault for when he reaches seventeen as an apology for the articles. Harry knows, but I don’t think he really cares that much, so it hasn’t come up.”

“At least there’s that,” Tracey muttered under her breath, remembering all the horrible slander in the _Daily Prophet_ over the past year and how everyone had agreed to keep the paper away from Harry at all costs. It hadn’t been very easy at all.

Still, she could see why Harry wouldn’t care. He didn’t really worry about the public’s opinion of him outside of Hogwarts, not when he knew the old Ministry had been influencing it. Plus, even if he was planning on going into the Wizengamot, he didn’t need the older generation’s support, not yet. No, Hogwarts was where Harry was working on his reputation, not in the real world just yet.

“I do have a question, though,” Remus commented from behind Sirius. He walked around his friend to settle down in an armchair. “What are we going to do to prevent something like this from happening again?”

“What do you mean?” Sirius asked curiously as he finally moved to sit, leaving only Tracey standing in the middle of the room.

“He means people like me,” Euan’s voice said from a different doorway, and Tracey turned enough to see that the four had returned, the others behind them. “What are we going to do to stop this from happening again?”

“I’ve got a few ideas,” Harry admitted, “though Astoria helped me think of the best one for the short-term.”

“Oh?” Samuel asked, gesturing for everyone to sit. Tracey rejoined her parents while watching Harry, Natalie, and Graham sit around Euan so he wasn’t alone; Euan had a light hold of Harry’s shirt. The others found spots on the various seats around the room.

“The Portkey Journal from last summer,” Astoria said, and Tracey blinked as she realized what the younger girl was suggesting. “If we hook it up to every single Journal using Harry’s because his is the Leader of Leader’s Journal, we can use it as a way to Portkey people to Grimmauld Place.” There was silence for a moment, and Harry and Tracey traded a glance that was full of a forming plan.

“If we use the Portkey connection, we might be able to spell a way to send out a warning to the Portkey Journal that will allow the one using it to know who to Portkey,” Harry added. “Someone could always wear it so that, when it heats up, the Portkey can be almost instantaneous.”

“What sort of signal?” Hermione asked. Tracey and Harry shared a glance, and Tracey knew he had as many ideas as she did, which was none.

Sighing, Tracey instinctually lifted her hand so that it covered the shrunken Journal hanging from her neck on the outside of her shirt. A snap caught her attention, and catching the look in his eyes, Tracey knew that Harry had just gotten an idea.

“Cover the shrunken Journal when it’s hanging from around the neck and say ‘Help,’ aloud!” he exclaimed. “It makes it obvious that they want help while also being something no one would do by accident, all the while being effective as the Journal won’t even have to be active for it to work.”

“And if the person is using their Journal at the time of an attack?” Hannah asked skeptically.

“The person asks to be helped like how I asked Harry last night,” Euan said softly, looking at his knees. Natalie rubbed his back while everyone fell silent at his words, not knowing what to say.

“How long will it take you to make it work?” Remus finally asked. Tracey and Harry shared another glance, and Tracey knew that he wanted to involve Ginny in this as she knew charms that neither of them knew. Plus, it was so normal for all three to do this sort of thing together that doing it without her would just be odd.

“A few hours?” she suggested with a shrug. “If Harry and I have the information and can get Ginny to work with us for a few hours, we should have it by nightfall.”

“Go to Harry’s room and work on it then,” Justin said matter-of-factly, but Harry shook his head.

“We’ll go there to pick up books, but the library would be a better place because of the extra sources.” Harry then turned to Euan. “You want to help us with this, Euan?” Euan just nodded and stood. “Well then, let’s get working.”

…

After seven hours of research, talking to Ginny, and charming the Portkey Journal, Harry felt satisfied with their work. They had already tested it on all of those staying at Marauder Manor except Tracey, Euan, and him to be sure it worked, and it had every time. Now they were going to try something a bit different.

“Remus, you’re going to Portkey Euan while Tracey and I are holding onto him,” Harry said, handing the Journal to the werewolf. “This will test not only a black Journal but also the multiple people idea.”

Nodding in understanding, Remus sat at a table in the library while Harry went over to where Euan and Tracey were standing. Euan had his hand already cupping his Journal while Tracey had a hold of his left arm. Grabbing Euan’s right arm, Harry told Euan to say the word.

“Help,” Euan whispered, and moments later, Harry felt that familiar but most definitely disliked feel of a tug on his navel before his feet left the floor and he was spinning, holding onto Euan. Shortly after, they all crashed onto the floor in the living room of Grimmauld Place where Cushioning Charms had been placed specifically for this.

“Well, it worked,” Harry said, standing up and helping the other two stand.

“Way to state the obvious,” Tracey replied dryly, making Harry roll his eyes before gesturing for her to lead the way to the Floo, following Euan down to the basement kitchen.

It didn’t take long for them to fall out of the Floo in Marauder Manor, Harry walking out with only a bit of a stumble. The others were waiting for them in the living room, and all it took was a nod from all three for small smiles to form on most of the faces in the room.

“Excellent,” Blaise said, rubbing his hands together.

“You said that this was short-term, though,” Maya reminded the others as she looked at him and Tracey. “What are you planning to do?”

“Samuel, are you up for making a lot more pendants, this time set to Grimmauld?” Harry innocently asked, knowing that Samuel would do it but wouldn’t enjoy so much of what little free time he had being spent doing this.

“Wait, if you’re going to make them permanent Portkeys like you did for the seventh years, how do you expect the others to get them?” Daphne demanded before Samuel could reply. “Owl?”

“Of course not,” Harry said, pretending to be indignant. “What do you take me for, an idiot? I was thinking that Aurors visiting all the current students of Hogwarts to be sure their homes have good protection would be a good enough excuse for the pendants to be handed out.”

“And Auntie can claim that it’s the Ministry’s way of making sure the next generation is safe if asked!” Susan exclaimed in understanding, realizing where he was going with this.

“Still trying to make Amelia look even better than she already does, Harry?” Daniel Greengrass asked in amusement as Harry shrugged.

“The more the Ministry and Aurors are seen as doing in this war against Voldemort, the more people will be willing to help and fight,” Harry said. “Now, is anyone up for some training?”

“I am,” Euan said almost instantly, and Harry turned to look at the young Gryffindor. He recognized the determination in the boy’s eyes and realized he was willing to do _anything_ to fight in this war now. It was saddening but would also make the other students at Hogwarts realize what was at stake when they saw him.

“Then let’s show you the basement so that we can teach you all we can over the next month,” Harry decided. “Natalie, Graham, can you show him downstairs while I get our things?”

“Sure,” they said together, standing to lead Euan downstairs. Euan went willingly, though Harry saw him look back to reassure himself that Harry was still there.

Once he heard the basement door closed, Harry sighed, moving to sit down on a couch, Tracey following him. With all that had happened the night before and today, Harry had basically forgotten it was his birthday except when relaxing a bit.

“Some birthday,” he sighed, not looking up. Still, he felt most stiffen, and he knew he wasn’t the only one to suddenly remember that it was the 31st of July. Raising a hand without even looking up, Harry said, “Don’t bother apologizing. Even I’ve been forgetting the date today. With all that’s happened, we’re all distracted, worried, and tense.”

“Why don’t we just celebrate both our birthdays tomorrow?” Tracey suggested. “We’ll have calmed down somewhat and can enjoy it more then. Plus, it’s actually my birthday tomorrow.”

Harry knew that the others agreed with the idea, and it worked perfectly fine for him. After all, Euan was his main concern at the moment, so he was quite willing to wait for tomorrow.

“And in two days, Sirius, you’re going over more Wizengamot information with me, Draco, Theo, and Neville,” Harry stated, internally grinning at the three boys’ groan as they remembered the hours of studying and reading about laws and how the government worked.

“Sure, but I hope you read those chapters I assigned,” Sirius replied with a shrug just as Harry finally looked up.

From the looks on Theo and Draco’s faces, they hadn’t finished yet. Harry only laughed as he stood to go upstairs to find weapons and swimwear for four people in the various bedrooms, knowing many would follow him shortly. They all knew they needed the training to get rid of the tension from the past twenty-four hours.

…

Euan was shocked as he watched how the older students trained. Yes, he had known they were _far_ ahead of the Hogwarts Protectors, but just _how_ far was astounding to him. Not only could they change between more weapons than he could even see on their persons at a moment’s notice, but they knew more spells than he thought even the seventh years knew, and they used them amazingly. Plus, finding out they were all Animagi was a shock as well.

Still, Harry and Astoria began helping him through the various lessons from over the past school year, Graham and Natalie adding in their own advice here and there from where they were sparring. He quickly realized why his two teachers, Graham and Natalie, had claimed time and time again that they were far from the best of their group.

Watching the others around him while drinking water to keep hydrated, he was slowly piecing together their various levels. Hermione knew the most spells, though it appeared that Harry was competing with her for that title, and Euan wouldn’t be surprised if the two Ravenclaws Terry and Padma were right up there with them. Harry, Astoria, Graham, and Natalie were the fastest, though he had been informed that Ginny was just as fast.

Besides the most powerful of the lot, Harry, Euan could tell that Neville was next in line for power, followed by Hermione, Blaise, Daphne, and Astoria. Everyone in this room was powerful, however, just because they worked at it and tried their best.

Except for Natalie and Graham, they all could cast silently, and even the two of them were doing half their spells without words, and when they did say them, it was always in a whisper.

The various Slytherins — Graham, Maya, Blaise, Draco, Theo, Astoria, Daphne, and Harry — were all the slyest and came up with plans on the spot. They would be doing something that made absolutely no sense in their duels until suddenly the plan came into play and it all made perfect sense, such as when Astoria and Daphne were double-teaming Blaise and Draco and the girls backed them into one another after soaking them both, suddenly freezing them in ice.

Susan, Justin, and Hannah did the best at working as a team with anyone, especially each other, and Neville wasn’t far behind them. In fact, they could all work together in random pairs or groups and have no problems. Euan knew that it came from years of working together and knowing how the others fought, weaving their styles and abilities together without thought. All of them together made up the perfect team.

Of course, this also meant that they knew how to teach him well. Astoria and Harry helped him by showing him how to use the moves and spells he already knew even more effectively, taking advantage of his small size to make him move fast in his attacks. That was all they did for the first two hours of training with him before having Graham spar with him a bit so that he could practice actually fighting with those moves.

“That’s enough,” Harry said as Euan felt himself slowing down considerably due to exhaustion. Graham immediately lowered his dagger and wand, returning them to their places in a sheath and holster respectively. Euan, however, fell to his knees, panting heavily, dropping his weapons onto the ground.

“You went too far, too fast, Euan,” Astoria said in his ear as she knelt next to him, putting an arm around his shoulders to raise his head, making it easier to breathe.

“We know you’re angry and upset and want to learn, Euan, but you can’t hurt yourself in the process,” Harry informed him softly, also kneeling down to pick up Euan’s weapons for him, replacing them in their places. “That’s enough for today. We’ll pick this up again in two days.”

“Why not tomorrow?” Euan asked instantly, still catching his breath slightly.

“There are a couple of birthdays in the house,” Natalie informed him with a slight smile. “We’re celebrating them both tomorrow, which means no training, only having fun.”

“Whose?” he had to ask, looking around to see everyone watching him with a bit of concern, and he realized they knew what he was feeling and why.

“Mine and Tracey’s,” Harry said, smiling a little. “We’ll probably swim in the pool over there and fly outside, possibly playing Quidditch again.”

“Happy birthday, then,” Euan said, smiling as much as he could at them both, knowing it was really a grimace from exhaustion, grief, and pain.

“Thanks, but you should tell that to Tracey tomorrow,” Harry replied with a laugh. Euan couldn’t help but be confused by his words. “August 1st is her birthday, and July 31st is mine.”

“Oh,” Euan said, realizing that today was Harry’s birthday. This meant that Harry was taking care of _him_ rather than enjoying his own birthday.

The thought made Euan slump down even more. Harry wouldn’t want to take care of a stupid twelve-year-old who couldn’t even protect his own family, not on his sixteenth birthday. Why was he even there? Everyone would probably be better off with him somewhere else, away from everyone.

“Stop,” Harry’s voice stated with an undertone that Euan had never heard before; it made him want to obey Harry. “Euan, right now, you’re more important. Tracey’s celebrated her birthday on mine more than once, so now I’m just returning the favor. I’d rather be helping you in any way I can than not after last night, even if it _is_ my birthday.”

“But — but, I’m just a stupid twelve-year-old who couldn’t even protect his own family,” Euan said quietly, looking at his knees. He didn’t want to see the disappointment in Harry’s eyes, nor the agreement he knew was there. What he wasn’t expecting was for Harry to place a hand under his chin to lift his face up so that he had no other option than to look into Harry’s emerald green eyes. It surprised him to see sadness and sympathy in them, but no disappointment or agreement.

“Euan, you aren’t at all stupid,” Harry informed him softly, his eyes shining with truth. “I’m nothing but proud of how you did last night. You gave them everything you had and beat them, even if you _were_ too late. It doesn’t matter to us. You fought, Euan, and you fought well.”

“Right now, you’re in pain,” another voice said, and Euan turned to see Tracey standing only a few steps from him and Harry. “One year ago, Harry was in the same state, and I helped him through it how I could. Now, we’re going to help you.”

Looking around him, Euan saw that every single teen was nodding in agreement, all looking at him. None of them were disappointed in his failure the night before, nor did they appear to want him anywhere but at Marauder Manor. No, to Euan it appeared that they were saddened by what had happened but also proud of how he had used his training.

It didn’t make sense to Euan, but it was the truth.

Euan hadn’t even noticed the tears falling down his cheeks until Astoria moved enough to wipe them away, one arm still across his shoulders. That only made him cry all the more, realizing that his mother would never wipe away his tears again. All that did was give Astoria a reason to pull him to her, hugging him tightly as he cried yet again.

He knew now that he wasn’t alone, not with all of these people around him, but he was still alone. His family was gone, never coming back. Euan would never be able to pick up his sister on his back and spin around and around and around, making her scream in delight. His mother would never send him homemade biscuits again. Now Euan couldn’t go to his father when he had a question that he had to ask about anything and everything.

Euan knew that they were gone, but he still couldn’t believe it. He knew that, if he had stayed in his own home, he would see images of them everywhere, doing things they normally did. His father would be in the living room, reading a newspaper; Liz would be in her room, humming and finger painting; his mother would be in the kitchen, cooking dinner for them all.

It hurt, knowing that these images now flying through his mind would never happen again. They were gone.

Still, Astoria’s arms around him, warm and moving slightly to rub his back, reminded Euan that he wasn’t alone. He had his friends who would support him and help him. While they weren’t his family, they cared for him and wanted him to have the best life he could.

He would try to let them in while learning all he could so that what happened last night could never happen again.

…

Lord Voldemort looked at the four teens kneeling before him carefully. He knew he had to use them as best he could in a way that would help him the most, but how? For now, they would be good for information that not even Severus could get as students at Hogwarts.

“What is the situation at Hogwarts?” he asked softly, and one of the girls lifted her head to look in his direction, though never in the eye.

“My Lord, we four are the only ones in Slytherin loyal to you anymore,” Pansy Parkinson informed him. “That _Potter_ ,” she spat the name out, “has converted the entire school to his side except for us. We are loyal to you, My Lord, ready to follow your every order.”

Lord Voldemort was anything but pleased at this report, but the way she willingly gave him information made him hold back his wand. Despite his anger at this, it was not her fault that the news she brought was anything but good, especially as Severus had already informed him of this, for the most part.

“And what are those loyal to Potter _doing_?” His voice was almost a soft hiss.

“They disappear in groups, unable to be found,” Parkinson informed him. Lord Voldemort could tell that she would be the best to speak for the group of Slytherins; Crabbe, Goyle, and Bulstrode were followers more than leaders in any form. “Madam Umbridge tried to find them all year, but there was no sight of them. We don’t know exactly what they’re up to, but we can tell that the students of Hogwarts are becoming fitter, able to use spells more easily in class. There’s no proof of anything, though, My Lord.”

So… Potter was trying to train his peers. Like that would help him, like it would help any of them. Still, that Gryffindor boy, only a second year, had beaten two of his best Death Eaters, most likely from the training of Potter. This did not bode well if allowed to continue. It would not do for Potter to teach his classmates how to duel if they would just join the Aurors when they finished with Hogwarts. Perhaps…

“You wish to join my ranks?” Lord Voldemort asked softly, and all four said together, quietly, “Yes, My Lord.”

“Well, then, I believe I have an assignment to see if you four are able to join my ranks and be Marked…”


	6. Chapter Six

Harry had to grin as he completely soaked Tracey from behind with the largest water gun, laughing aloud before he dove back under the water to escape her wrath.

So far their joint birthday party had been a huge hit. All of the teens had let go of their worries for a single day. They pushed away thoughts of Voldemort, training, the Wizengamot, the Ministry, and the war so that they could have fun. Even Euan was joining in on the water war, smiling a bit, even if he couldn’t bring himself to laugh just yet.  
  
All the swimming they had been doing lately, especially holding water guns, made it so that Harry was quite speedy under water. Tracey lost him in the crowd of teens swimming all over, allowing Harry to surface and catch his breath. His hands quickly found the cap and twisted it open, allowing the gun to quickly reload underwater. It didn’t take long for it to become obvious to all involved that completely immersed in the water was better than only half-immersed when it came to refilling.  
  
“There you are!” Tracey yelled, and Harry turned to see her aiming at his head with the second largest gun in the pool.  
  
“Uh-oh,” he muttered before diving under again, closing his gun as he kicked away as fast as he could. He should have known better than to attack Tracey, but it had been just so tempting…  
  
He looked around, his prescription goggles from the Muggle world allowing him to see perfectly even without his glasses. Tracey was nearby, turning in circles, which meant she was looking for him. Harry held his gun in position, pumping it quickly as he began to run out of air.  
  
The moment Tracey turned her back on him, Harry surfaced and fired on the back of her head again. As she turned, he sank back under the water, turning to swim away from her before she could grab his ankle like last time.  
  
When he turned to look for her again, Harry almost let out a sigh of relief as she saw Theo was within shooting distance of her. If there was one person Tracey loved to shoot more than Harry, it was Theo. He was safe for now.  
  
“Nicely done,” Maya said from right next to Harry as he surfaced again, catching his breath.  
  
“Thanks,” he said between pants, grinning in her direction. “Not easy escaping her.”  
  
“Then why do you always tempt her by shooting her again?” Maya asked with an amused look on her face.  
  
“It’s too tempting not to soak her, at times,” Harry replied, his breath finally back as he moved to lean against the side of the pool. He quickly opened up the water gun again to allow it to reload. It was the only problem with this gun: one shot was a good portion of its supply.  
  
“Are we going to go flying soon?” Graham asked Harry as he suddenly surfaced right between him and Maya.  
  
“Graham!” Maya exclaimed. “What have I told you about doing that?”  
  
“Not to?” he asked cheekily with a grin to match his tone. He then turned back to Harry. “So, are we?”  
  
“I’m up for it, but you have to ask Tracey as it’s her party as well,” Harry replied. Graham’s eyes widened in fear as he turned to see Tracey and Theo going at it again, shots of water soaking the both teens, who had determined looks on their faces.  
  
“Uh… I can wait,” he said slowly. Harry just laughed in understanding.  
  
“We’ll fly soon,” Harry promised, “but we should probably let Tracey and Theo get this out of their system before _we_ regret it.”  
  
All three of them laughed quietly before lifting their guns and agreeing silently to work as a team against the others.

…

“And Team Potter wins by 20 points!” Maya called out with a laugh as Harry caught the Snitch.  
  
Harry grinned and raised his fist into the air, the Snitch visible within it. His six teammates cheered as they all headed down to the ground. Draco’s team, Team Black, congratulated them on the win. It had been a tough match as Draco’s team had the better Chasers and Keeper while Harry had the better Beaters and Seeker.  
  
“Nice match,” Harry said as he shook Draco’s hand with a grin. “I was afraid you’d score too much for us to win with the Snitch near the end there.”  
  
“And I was hoping you wouldn’t see the Snitch until we had gotten the score we needed to win even if you caught it,” Draco returned with a laugh. “Still, a good match in the end.”  
  
“Kids! Time for dinner!” Daniella Davis called out from the Manor. All of the teens exchanged looks before most of the boys called out “ _FOOD!!!_ ” and took off running, many changing into their Animagus forms as they ran.  
  
Harry stayed behind with Euan, though, to make sure he was okay. The younger boy seemed in better spirits than the day before, but Harry understood what Euan was doing. He had done the same two years before.  
  
Euan was pushing his emotions aside to train and fit in, pretending that nothing had happened. He took in the happiness and excitement of Harry and his friends, using it to push aside his pain and sadness so that he didn’t feel it for a little while.  
  
Unfortunately, this would just make it that much harder when the pain came back. Harry knew that Euan was going to have nightmares for the third night in a row, and he would most likely break down before even going to sleep.  
  
This was why Harry knew having Euan stay in his room was best. He knew when to talk to Euan and when to be quiet, either just to let him accept what had happened or so that he would talk himself. Eventually, Euan would talk about what happened and get a measure of peace, even if he was always scarred from this.  
  
“You okay?” he asked Euan quietly, and the Gryffindor looked up at Harry before smiling gently, nodding. “No, you’re not, but we’ll talk about it this evening when everyone is in bed.” Euan sighed and nodded in understanding, probably realizing that he wasn’t getting out of it. “Now, come on, race you!”  
  
Harry took off running, and he soon heard Euan chasing after him. It was time for dinner, pizza, and presents, most of which would probably be books on the Wizengamot, Defensive and Offensive Magic that included Charms and Transfiguration as well, Arithmancy, and Ancient Runes. Still, it was turning into a good birthday.

…

Severus Snape stood in the shadows of the dining room of Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest, a scowl on his face.  
  
He did not enjoy being forced to go through these meetings. Severus would much rather just report to Dumbledore in his office and get updates on meetings at the same time instead of actually having to come. Unfortunately, Dumbledore forced him to stay and listen while also reporting certain details to the entire Order if he had them.  
  
Still, this meeting would be one of interest as a Muggle-born student had lost his entire family in a Death Eater attack. It had been the news of the Wizarding world since it became known, and now Severus would be able to see how others were taking it, Dumbledore specifically.  
  
“I believe we all know the news of this meeting,” Dumbledore said as silence fell in the room. “Euan Abercrombie, a Gryffindor second year, lost his parents and younger sister just last night in an attack on a Muggle village.”  
  
Severus could see that the twinkle was absent from the Headmaster’s eyes while many of the women in the room were near tears and the men had hard faces. Everyone was affected by the news as no one wanted to hear about something like this. However, Severus knew that Abercrombie was only the first; more would die, some Muggle and some Magical.  
  
“How is the poor boy doing?” Molly Weasley asked, her face and voice full of sadness and worry.  
  
“I cannot tell you as I have not seen him since term ended,” Dumbledore admitted, and Severus had to stop himself from raising an eyebrow. The Headmaster unable to see a student after an attack? How did someone, _anyone_ , manage this?  
  
“ _WHAT?!_ ” Molly Weasley yelled, though Severus saw many quietly asking the same thing.  
  
“Albus, you must be kidding!” Minerva McGonagall exclaimed. “The only reason that I did not personally see to my lion was because I thought you had!” Severus had to smirk at Dumbledore’s paling face as Minerva tore into him with her glare.  
  
“Minerva, I tried my best to see young Euan, but Amelia blocked all attempts,” Dumbledore said, trying to calm everyone down while speaking to his deputy. “She claimed that he was with people who cared for him and would help him in any way they could, though she would not elaborate when I asked.”  
  
“So you’re telling me that a traumatized boy is now at an unknown location, and you’re doing _nothing_ about it?” Molly Weasley demanded, and Severus actually did smirk at how Dumbledore was reacting under the two women’s glares along with many lesser ones throughout the Order.  
  
“There is nothing for me to do,” Dumbledore sighed. “I tried using magic to find him, but he is most certainly well protected. No spell I know of could find him. Very few charms or wards can have that result, meaning he is quite safe wherever he is.”  
  
“And how do you know that he isn’t being held by Death Eaters?” Molly Weasley demanded. Severus didn’t speak even if he was sure that Euan Abercrombie was _not_ being held by Death Eaters. From the little he had heard from the Death Eaters, the boy had captured the two Death Eaters in his home, though not soon enough to save his family, unfortunately. No, the boy was out of Death Eater clutches.  
  
“Amelia was kind enough to show me a picture of young Euan when I asked for proof that he was fine,” Dumbledore said slowly. “It showed him with haunted eyes and an exhaustion about him, but he was eating breakfast at a table, almost as if he didn’t even notice the camera. In fact, I believe he was speaking to someone else in the picture.”  
  
“It only showed the boy?” Kingsley Shacklebolt questioned, and Severus had to admit that the man was a good Auror with the few questions he asked. They always drew out points that were good for an investigation.  
  
“Only Euan,” Dumbledore agreed with a nod. “In fact, I have a feeling that was on purpose so that I have no idea who he is staying with or where. He most likely knew the picture would be taken, just not when.”  
  
“So my young lion is safe?” Minerva asked just to be sure. Severus couldn’t fault her for it as he would most likely be doing the same for his snakes, especially Harry Potter and his friends. He would never admit it, but that group had to be his favorite of the Slytherins at Hogwarts at the moment. That Potter was Lily’s son only helped.  
  
“The attack obviously hurt him greatly, but he is physically fine,” Dumbledore said calmly. “We will be able to gauge his emotional state when term starts. All we can do now is hope that wherever he is, those watching him are keeping a good eye on him and providing him with the help he needs.”  
  
Severus had a feeling he knew who was with Abercrombie, and if his hunch was correct, the boy would be fine eventually.  
  
“Now, is there any other news…?” Dumbledore asked. Severus just rolled his eyes and prepared himself for another boring meeting from that point on.

…

Samuel Davis stood in the doorway of his office, looking around the Auror office area. Cubicles were full of the First Auror Force; the Second Force had their offices at his old home instead. The mood in the office was quite low, moral at the lowest Samuel had seen it since the first war against Voldemort.  
  
Of course, he knew _exactly_ why everyone was like this. It was hard to have good moral after a Muggle-born lost his entire family. The fact that a good number of these Aurors had been on the response team he had pulled together to retrieve Euan did not help.  
  
Euan Abercrombie’s house had been a complete disaster.  
  
Walls, furniture, the floor, the stairs… so much of the house had been torn apart by the duels that had occurred, and that wasn’t even thinking about the blood all over it. The images would haunt all who saw them for months, if not years. They were the images of the first casualties in the Wizarding world after admitting that Voldemort had returned, and they hit all who had seen them hard.  
  
It was the day after his daughter’s birthday, two since the attack, and still the Aurors were in a dark mood. Samuel didn’t know how to bring morale back up, unfortunately. Unless…  
  
He slipped back into his office to use the Floo, calling out for Harry before giving him the idea that had come to him. Fortunately, Harry agreed after speaking to the others.  
  
A few minutes later, Samuel let off a few sparks to catch the attention of his Aurors, all of whom quickly stood with their wands drawn to see what had made the noise. The reaction time was very fast, and it made Samuel proud to see it. Still, he now had things to say.  
  
“We’ve all been down since the Abercrombie attack, so I thought maybe this would help you all,” Samuel said to the group, and he saw their confusion and curiosity. He just smiled slightly and moved aside, allowing both Harry and Euan to walk out of his office so that they were both seen quite easily by the Aurors. “I believe you know who both of these young men are. They’re quite willing to talk with you for an hour or two before returning to their safe house.”  
  
The Aurors made their way out of the cubicles, and Samuel watched as Harry began leading Euan down between the cubicles after asking the Aurors to return to them. They both stopped at each cubicle and spoke to the occupants, Harry smiling slightly and even Euan cheering up a bit.  
  
Samuel checked in with some of the first few Aurors the boys had visited, and he saw they were a bit more relaxed compared to before. It seemed seeing not only Euan safe and sound after the attack, even if he was still obviously affected by it, but also Harry had made them realize that, while there would be failures, they still had reasons to fight and keep going. The younger generation was a reason to fight, as well as for the survivors who managed to escape the Death Eaters.  
  
By the time the pair had to leave, the Auror office was a lot less dark, and he could tell that both boys had enjoyed it, even if Euan had been accepting condolences the entire time.  
  
Samuel hoped that this had helped everyone involved.

…

“I hate you for this,” Draco informed Harry with a groan as he, Theo, Neville, and Harry settled down in one of the studies with two books each, one large and one medium-sized.  
  
“You’ve all said that in various ways for over a month, Draco,” Harry replied in a calm voice. “Saying it again doesn’t change anything.”  
  
“Yeah, but we’re only studying this because of _you_!” Draco exclaimed, holding up the smaller book with just one word on the leather cover: _Wizengamot._  
  
“I’m not forcing any of you to do this,” Harry sighed. At least one of his friends complained about this every single day. “You offered to do it, remember?”  
  
Draco just groaned as he opened the smaller of the books and began to read the second-to-last chapter while Harry put aside the smaller book, having already finished it, to work on the larger one. Theo was just shaking his head silently as he neared the three-quarters mark of the larger book, and Neville opened to the middle of the larger one.  
  
This was the tenth book Harry had been given by Sirius about the Wizengamot since summer started. Then he added on the other eight he read during the school year, and he felt he knew everything he could possibly know from books on the Wizengamot and the oldest, most ancient laws. Of course, that meant that Sirius had lessons on the more current people in the Wizengamot as well as assigning books on newer laws while asking Amelia or Samuel to bring laws home for the three of them to read and possibly amend, if not rewrite altogether.  
  
It was all a pain for them, but they knew this was what they would be doing daily once they finished Hogwarts with their decision to accept their family seats in two years.  
  
Working as a group helped them make sure they learned what they needed while the various adults in Marauder Manor passed on their knowledge almost daily. All of them had been put through lessons on how to speak at the Wizengamot as well as other Pureblood customs that not even Harry’s three friends knew yet as they were usually taught at this age.  
  
Everything was tough, but despite the complaining, all three of them took to it quite seriously. They wanted to do their part in helping the Wizarding World to make it a better place to live, and this was a simple yet effective way to do that. In the long run, all of this effort was for everyone in their world.  
  
Still, that didn’t stop the complaints of Harry’s friends when they were assigned yet another book by Sirius that they didn’t want to read as it looked enormous.

…

Harry sat down for breakfast just a few days after his birthday, his friends all finding other seats at the large table. It was just a normal morning, and most of his friends had wet hair from showers after their morning run around the grounds. Harry’s own hair was still quite damp as he reached for the eggs, piling them onto his plate before passing the platter to Tracey and accepting the bacon from Euan.  
  
The room was quiet except for the sound of forks clattering against plates as they were all still sleepy enough that talking just wasn’t what they wanted to do just yet. Of course, that changed the moment a large number of owls flew in the specially-charmed window that opened when owls came within a certain distance of the house, one for each teenager.  
  
“Oh no,” Hermione moaned from a few seats down as Harry pulled the envelope from the owl, allowing the owl to take off just after the letter was removed.  
  
“What’s wrong, Hermione?” Natalie asked as she opened her envelope to find her Hogwarts letter and the permission slip for Hogsmeade that she would have to have her parents sign.  
  
“These include our OWL results!” Hermione exclaimed, waving her envelope around. Harry had already known that, which was why his letter was sitting next to his plate as he decided he would rather finish his breakfast before dealing with what he knew was going to be chaos.  
  
“Oh,” Natalie said, realizing now why the soon-to-be sixth years had yet to open their letters, some staring at them in fear and others just preferring to eat before opening them. “Just open it, then!”  
  
“But what if I failed?” Hermione asked in a rush, and Harry rolled his eyes. She had done this after the exams as well, and it was quite annoying, really. Everyone knew she had probably achieved straight Outstandings on her OWLs, so listening to her worry wasn’t fun at all.  
  
“Oh just open it already, Hermione,” Draco groaned. “We all know you did well, so just get it over with!”  
  
Hermione gulped and opened her letter, slowing pulling out the folded parchment to read it. Everyone watched as her eyes traveled over the letter before she relaxed in relief. “Eleven Outstandings,” she said, her happiness and relief evident in her voice.  
  
“Good job, Hermione!” Remus told her from the doorway, where Harry saw all the adults standing. “How about the rest of you?”  
  
Before Harry could open his envelope to see his results, he heard a gasp before Graham said, “Go Maya!” Turning, he saw his fellow Slytherin holding up a Prefect badge, and he had to smile. It appeared the Professors had caught onto their leadership system and were taking advantage of it to choose at least one of the two Prefects in each House.  
  
As everyone congratulated the new Prefect, Harry opened his letter and pulled out the various sheets of parchment. The first he opened was his book list, which told him what books were needed for each subject he could take with his OWL results so that he could purchase only the ones for the subjects he was taking. The second letter told him that he was still a Prefect and reminded him that he needed to go to the Prefect meeting with the Head Boy and Girl during the ride to Hogwarts on September 1st. Finally, all that was left were his OWL results.  
  
**_Ordinary Wizarding Level Results_**  
  
Pass Grades:  


> Outstanding (O)  
>    
>  Exceeds Expectations (E)  
>    
>  Acceptable (A)

  
  
Fail Grades:  


> Poor (P)  
>    
>  Dreadful (D)  
>    
>  Troll (T)

  
  
**Harry James Potter has achieved:**  
  
Ancient Runes: O  
  
Arithmancy: E  
  
Astronomy: O  
  
Care of Magical Creatures: O  
  
Charms: O  
  
Defense Against the Dark Arts: O  
  
Herbology: O  
  
History of Magic: A  
  
Muggle Studies: O  
  
Potions: O  
  
Transfiguration: O  
  
Harry had to smile as he looked at his results. No, not as good as Hermione, but he didn’t mind. She had an amazing memory, and he also had never taken Arithmancy as a course. Of course, he also knew that it wasn’t just his memory skills that had lowered his History score, remembering the sharp pains of his scar during the exam.  
  
“How’d you do?” Tracey asked him softly, and he passed her his results, taking a look at hers. Except for an E in Potions, they had the exact same results. “Not bad, Harry; not bad at all.”  
  
“You as well, Trace,” Harry replied with a smile as they returned the results to their owners.  
  
“Harry, what’d you get?” Sirius called from the other side of the room, and Harry sighed before pulling out his wand. Summoning every single result sheet, ignoring the protests of his friends, Harry levitated them into the air and stuck them onto the wall of the room, enlarging them so that everyone could read the results of the fifth years.  
  
Harry saw that his friends had done quite well, everyone passing each exam they had taken. Some had lower scores in their weaker subjects, such as Neville and Theo with Potions where they both received Acceptables, but overall, they all did quite well. Each person had at least two or three Outstandings, if not almost all their grades being O’s. The one subject they all achieved the same score in was Defense, where each teenager had earned an Outstanding.  
  
“Well done, you lot,” Sirius declared with a grin as he moved around the table to ruffle Harry’s hair. “You did well!”  
  
“You really did,” Remus agreed. “Not one of you failed a single subject, which is more than Sirius here can say!”  
  
“ _Moony_ ,” Sirius whined, “they were only History and Divination!”  
  
Harry and his friends laughed at Sirius’s face, which was in a pout. Harry could tell that everyone was both relieved and pleased with their scores, just as he himself was. Their scores were good, and they all had multiple choices for their NEWT classes. It was a good morning.

…

Susan was in the pool using a water pistol, the smallest of the water guns they had, to randomly shoot at her friends in the pool. Hannah just glared before returning to her laps while Justin took that as a reason to go find the largest gun and try to spray her in return. Susan just grinned as she submerged and swam away so quickly that he couldn’t hit her while she continued to get direct hits on him.  
  
She was actually among the few to recognize part of the reasons they had the water guns in the first place. They made for excellent practice at aiming using weapons other than their throwing knives and wands while also getting them into the pool to swim for a few hours straight. It always seemed that wars of some kind made her and the others more active, despite her being a Hufflepuff.  
  
Swimming right up behind Justin, she tapped him on the back while still below the surface, making him jump and spin around to see her finally surface and laugh. He grinned in amusement as he realized she had hit him.  
  
“Truce?” she asked, holding out a hand. Justin grasped it.  
  
“Truce,” he agreed, still smiling at her.  
  
They let go and put the water guns along the side of the pool before leaning against it and watching those on the other side of the basement who were training.  
  
Harry and Astoria were working with Euan again, the smaller boy moving as quickly as he could while using the new moves he had just been taught. Astoria had her dagger out and was showing him various ways to use the moves while Harry stood behind Euan, occasionally fixing his stance or movement by carefully grasping Euan’s wrist or thigh and moving him slowly. They had all learned the hard way not to even touch Euan out of nowhere unless one was Harry, and that seemed to be because only Harry had figured out how to do it in a way that didn’t startle him.  
  
Nearby, Graham and Natalie were sparring using swords, daggers, and wands, switching between the three with an ease that only their two years of practice allowed. Maya was watching them carefully so that neither one would be hurt. Everyone knew that they wouldn’t be hurt and she only did it because she viewed the pair as her siblings, even if only Graham was related to her.  
  
Susan could also see Luna in another area of that part of the basement, going through sword moves like they were a dance. Susan really didn’t know what to think of the Ravenclaw, but she knew that the girl was intelligent, insightful, kind, and quite good at observing things. The only problem was understanding her insights and comments as Luna enjoyed mentioning creatures that Susan had never even _heard_ of before as part of her everyday speech. Still, Susan liked her and managed to talk with her when they were together.  
  
Daphne, Draco, Theo, and Blaise were all in their Animagus forms. Daphne and Blaise, the largest of the four as a lion and bear respectively, were wrestling while Draco and Theo, both foxes, had their own fight with one another. It was obvious they were enjoying themselves.  
  
Susan was pretty sure that Tracey and Hermione were upstairs working with Samuel on the Portkey pendants until everyone was called for a snack and then bed. More than one person making the Portkeys made it go faster, even if the girls were only making the pendants, not charming them to be Portkeys.  
  
“Euan’s getting good,” Justin commented suddenly, and Susan turned to see that he and Graham were sparring again. Euan was obviously still a novice, but he was getting quite a bit better in just five days of practice.  
  
“By the end of August, he’ll be ready for the third year level, if not fourth,” Susan agreed with a nod. “Speaking of the HPs, we’ll probably have to test everyone to see how they’re doing and then reorganize the groups.”  
  
“I think we’ll leave that up to Harry, Tracey, and Ginny to think about, don’t you?” Hannah suddenly asked from Justin’s other side, and both he and Susan spun around to see that she had almost silently swam up to him. Susan hated it when she did that.  
  
“We should,” Justin finally said, and Susan knew he had quickly shaken off Hannah’s sudden appearance just as she had, “but they’ll be asking our opinions and ideas anyway, so we should think about it at times so that we can give ideas quick and easily to them.”  
  
“Good point,” Hannah has to agree with a nod.  
  
“I just hope not too many lost their touch and need to be taught with those younger than them,” Susan sighed. “Hopefully most will either stay with their years or be moved up.”  
  
“They were taking it quite seriously by the end of the year,” Justin reminded her, and Susan had to agree. “Plus, the news about Euan would get many of them to train harder, even without us there to make them.”  
  
Susan had no counter for that as the Azkaban Breakout had done the same thing last winter, increasing the level of intensity that the others trained by at least tenfold, surprising all of them. Of course, they could only hope that the others even had the chance to train as they knew that many couldn’t.  
  
Ron and Ginny were just two examples of those who could not really train, being kept inside their home — which was really Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix rather than their real home — at all times with their mother always down their back if they were out of her sight for too long. Others had reported similar things, and they all knew the Muggle-borns could do nothing with their wands unless they were at friends’ homes.  
  
Still, Susan had a feeling everyone would do what they could to be sure they were always prepared in case Death Eaters attacked.  
  
“Let’s worry about this later,” she decided. Before Justin or Hannah could say anything else, she grabbed two of the smaller water guns from beside her and squirted them both at once, diving under the water to swim as far away as she could get as fast as she could.  
  
When she surfaced, they were all grinning even as Hannah and Justin moved towards her with the larger water guns in hand.


	7. Chapter Seven

Harry closed the book he had finally finished reading with a quiet “ _snap_ .” There were three more weeks of summer, and he had been reading that four-hundred or so page book for at least three weeks, Sirius assigning various chapters to read thoroughly every few days.

Draco, slumped at his own desk in the study that had been modified for their use, appeared to be perhaps fifteen pages from the end of the book. Theo, on the other hand, still had half of the final chapter to complete while Neville was just starting the last chapter. Harry knew Neville’s speed at reading this wasn’t because he was a slow reader, like many thought when they watched him, but because he read slower so that he absorbed the material better, even if it did take him longer.

Pushing away his book, Harry leaned his chair on only the back two legs as he stretched, his muscles and joints a bit sore after being in the same position for so long. No one else reacted to his actions, but Harry knew they had all noted them and knew he had finally finished. After five years of working together on homework, they all knew how the other three boys worked.

Placing his chair back on all of its legs, Harry reached out to pull the sheet of parchment he had found on his desk just a few hours ago. Sirius had taken to writing out his instructions and leaving them for the boys rather than actually acting like a teacher all the time, only showing himself when their reading was done and they were going to discuss what they had learned.

_Once finished with the book, you may go relax around the house doing whatever until all four of you are done. The charm that will be placed on you as you leave the room will make a buzzing for your ears alone when the last boy finishes, which is your cue to return to this room for further instructions._

Harry couldn’t help but grin as he placed the parchment back on the desk, cleaned up the notes he had actually taken while reading, put the books he had used on the small bookshelf above his desk, and headed out of the room. The others turned to look at him as he left, and Harry just grinned and waved before closing the door behind him.

He had at least a full hour before Neville was done, if not more, which meant Harry could go find a snack before seeing what Tracey was up to. Maybe they could plan a few pranks for later that day, possibly bringing Euan in on them…

…

Settling down on one of the two couches in “ _The Wizengamot Study_ ,” as they had taken to calling it, Harry sighed. It was time to find out what Sirius wanted them to do with the knowledge they had gained from reading that book on how to write and amend laws for so many hours, and hopefully it would be something they could enjoy at least a little.

“So, you’ve all completed the reading for today,” Sirius said as he walked in the door, not even completely through it before he began. “Now it’s time to see how well you learned your lessons. The four of you are going to be working together to create a new law that you would present to the Wizengamot. It can be on anything you want, silly or serious, a new law to replace one in existence — I don’t really care. Just make a law, and I want you all to present it at dinner tonight, so I’d get working.”

Sirius left before any of the boys could say a word, and Harry knew that the pranks he, Tracey, and Euan were going to pull that evening after dinner would be the perfect revenge for this. His will for revenge grew even larger when he heard the door lock, obviously with a spell that they wouldn’t be able to undo.

“Please tell me you’re already thinking of revenge,” Theo practically begged as they all turned to face one another. Harry nodded slightly, his eyes hard.

“Let’s talk about this later,” Draco declared before Theo could ask him about it. “We’ve got just over three hours to write a law for the Wizengamot.”

“What can we even write it about?” Neville asked as he twisted his hands nervously. He was a great speaker, but he did not enjoy being put on the spot like this when it came to Sirius and their lessons.

“Well…” Harry began slowly, and the others all turned to him hopefully. “I have been thinking about ideas for possible werewolf laws — you know, for Remus…”

“Tell us one or two so that we can try to use one of them,” Draco said in a rush, already pulling out his Journal and pencil to write it all down.

…

“I believe our four Wizengamot students have something they would like to present,” Sirius commented lightly after the meal was finished but before anyone left the table. He gestured to Harry, who glared at him. “Boys?”

All four boys stood, Neville holding a small scroll in his hands. They had already discussed what they were going to do as the law hadn’t taken them as long as they feared, though making it just right was a pain in the arse.

“Yes, we do,” Harry said, his voice a growl. “You see, Sirius here decided to give us just over three hours to write a law after we finished reading the book on how to do it. No warning whatsoever.” Almost everyone at the table turned to give Sirius either hard looks or looks of disbelief, and his smug expression suddenly disappeared as he realized Harry had turned the tables on him with just one sentence.

“Sirius, how could you?!” Daniella Davis exclaimed.

“Not even _you_ had to do that, Sirius!” Remus reminded his friend. “I remember the day you wrote me a letter about that lesson, and it was at least two weeks after you finished that book.”

Harry was trying not to snicker as he watched the others tear into Sirius, though what Remus said made it a lot easier not to as he was upset with Sirius. He had probably assigned the work just to see the four of them fail at it for a laugh. Well, they would show him. Harry nodded slightly in Neville’s direction, and Neville cleared his throat loudly to get everyone’s attention.

“Now that we’ve gotten to enjoy your tearing into Sirius like that, we’d like to present our proposal for a law,” Neville said formally, obviously trying hard not to grin at not only his first few words but also the shocked looks on everyone’s faces, even Sirius’s.

“I didn’t expect you to actually finish it!” Sirius exclaimed so quietly that Harry just heard him. He decided to call his godfather on that little detail after Neville was done.

“We decided quite quickly that we were going to rewrite the laws about werewolves,” Neville continued, looking straight at Remus as he said it before opening the scroll in his hands. “Our law states that, because werewolves are only dangerous one day a month, they are not to be considered Dark _except_ on the night of a full moon. In addition, because there is, indeed, a potion that can _help_ werewolves not only control their wolf forms but also makes the transformation less painful, said potion, known as the Wolfsbane Potion, will be offered free of cost for all registered werewolves.

“Also, assistance to create safe rooms so that, if there is a problem with aforementioned potion, the werewolf living at the residence will not be a danger to anyone else, all of this free of cost. Werewolves will also be allowed jobs so long as they do not go to work the day before, of, or after the full moon.”

As each addition was made to their law, Harry saw Remus’s eyes begin to tear up more and more. He knew his father’s friend was completely moved by what they were writing, all for him.

“However, if a werewolf on the Wolfsbane Potion _purposely_ tries to hurt another human being — or bites another — without provocation as it’s known that even those who took the mentioned potion can be overcome by the wolf if given enough reason, then said werewolf _will_ be punished. Said werewolf will also be required to transform in a Ministry werewolf site.

“All werewolves are required to take the Wolfsbane Potion, and any who are caught without having taken it without a legitimate reason will be fined fifty Galleons, with the amount rising by twenty-five Galleons for each offense. Those with a legitimate reason will be excused, though those who get by without will be few as there are few legitimate reasons for not taking the Wolfsbane Potion as it is to be provided for free for any afflicted by this curse.”

Neville finally finished, and Harry offered his friend a proud grin before looking around the room. Almost everyone was shocked by the law they had written up, and they didn’t even know it was only a rough draft of what would most likely be the first and largest law in a series of werewolf laws. They had already outlined ideas for many more additions to it in the amount of time they had been working on this, and all four of them knew that this was something they were _actually_ going to propose to the Wizengamot when the time came for them to join the body.

Looking at Remus again, Harry saw he had given up on the fight against his tears, allowing them to fall down his face. Sirius appeared to be close to tears, most likely because he knew how much this would mean to his best friend, and he had a hand on Remus’s shoulder. Samuel, Daniel, and Amelia all looked as if this was something they, themselves, would support in the Wizengamot.

The reactions of his friends, though, weren’t what he was expecting. They were all in a state of shock, it appeared, unable to find something to say or do, just looking at the four Wizengamot students in disbelief. It was as if they hadn’t expected him and the other three to be able to learn so much in so little time, most likely because they hadn’t realized just how much they learned in the six or so hours almost every day they spent in that study.

Finally, though, Tracey nodded at Harry with a small smile on her face that was then focused on the other three, and Harry knew that she thought they had done well. Everyone else then began to come out of their various trances, Remus wiping away his tears as he looked at the four boys.

“I — I don’t know what to say,” Remus finally said softly, turning from them to look at the table.

“Well, I do,” Daniel Greengrass declared. “You four wrote a fantastic law for werewolves!”

“That wasn’t _a_ law,” Sirius disagreed, shaking his head slightly, his voice a bit tight with emotion. “It’s multiple laws in one presentation. How did you come up with it so fast and write it so well?”

Harry didn’t even react when the three boys on either side of him pointed in his direction, having expected it the moment the question was asked. When the others had heard how well thought out his ideas were, they quickly began writing down his ideas and copying them to a single sheet of parchment, which was now their outline for ideas about werewolf laws. With the large number of basic ideas on the paper, it didn’t take long for the four of them together to add in the smaller details for this one law, which was the start point for the rest.

“Of course,” Sirius said, shaking his head.

“I was already thinking about ideas for how to make the lives of werewolves better because of Remus,” Harry admitted, his gaze above the heads of everyone else so that he could keep his face blank. “When you gave us the assignment, I just told Theo, Neville, and Draco, and this law was born.”

“I think I want to see what else you three did in those three hours, now,” Amelia announced after a few moments of silence, “because it seems to me you probably did more than anyone could have expected you to do in so little time. If you four can write laws as good as this one, I might just give the job to the four of you to fix the laws once you’ve finished at Hogwarts.”

“I thought that was already the plan,” Draco mused, turning to Harry, Theo, and Neville. They all shared amused looks, especially when they saw the surprise on the faces of the adults in the room.

“Why did you think we’ve been working so hard at this?” Theo asked, and Harry had to snort, earning him a glare. Harry knew that everyone realized Theo had a point with that as he _hated_ to study or do work most of the time and only did it when nagged, but here he was, doing the reading and assignments with only a few basic complaints, more to ease the tension and make the others laugh than anything.

“We’ve be working so hard because we already decided that the four of us would lead a reform in the Wizengamot,” Neville added.

“The next generation will follow me, with what I’ve been doing at Hogwarts, which means anyone who accepts a seat on the Wizengamot in the next few years — which is actually quite a number of people — will want to help me,” Harry said. “With the help of those who also do not like many of the laws at the moment, such as those in this room, we’ll have a good number of votes.”

“Add in Harry’s fame and the obvious example of what our laws have allowed to happen in the form of Voldemort, and we’ll have quite a backing,” Draco finished with a slight grin.

“You’ve really thought this through,” Susan commented as the adults seemed unable to say anything. “Are you willing to have help?”

“Of course!” Neville said, looking relieved at the offer. Harry knew exactly what he felt as it wasn’t easy thinking of ideas and details for laws, not even with four of them. The more who wanted the help, the more that would get done.

“Well, then, why don’t you four go get what you used to prepare this law here, and tomorrow all who want to help can join you in the study to work on making this one more formal as well as generating a few more new laws?” Sirius suggested, his composure back.

“Sure,” Harry said with a shrug, gesturing for the others to follow him. Before he left the room, though, he caught Tracey’s eyes, and she nodded slightly to show that she understood to have Euan set off the prank on Sirius.

Just as the four boys reached the study, they heard Sirius yell, “ _HARRY!!!_ ” and burst out laughing.

…

Two-and-a-half weeks before school was set to begin again, Harry could tell that the adults were feeling quite anxious and worried.

Lord Voldemort had yet to attack again after the one on Euan’s village. Euan was just as nervous as the adults were, training as much as he could, reading the _Daily Prophet_ each morning, and asking Samuel how the two different Auror Forces were doing during their daily practices. Everyone could tell that he was afraid of the Aurors not being prepared for an attack when it came, and his actions became even more nervous with each passing day without an attack.

Amelia and Samuel were spending quite a few hours at the Ministry, working not only on preparing the Aurors, but also on deciding what to do with the Death Eaters being held in Azkaban under goblin protection. They both came home wanting dinner and bed most nights, the weekends the only days they weren’t completely exhausted as Harry, Tracey, and Susan made them promise to only go in for six or seven hours on Saturday and Sunday rather than their more normal nine to eleven hours.

Sirius was pranking Remus more and more, actually going far enough for the werewolf to request that Harry and Tracey prank the dog Animagus until he agreed to calm down. Samantha and Daniella were seen reading quite a bit more than usual, usually books on Defensive and Offensive Magic from the library, while Daniel and Remus joined the teenagers on runs out on the grounds each morning.

The teens, however, didn’t change by much except to up their training to be more intensive, swimming less and dueling one another more and more. Teaching Euan and pranking with Euan and Tracey were among the few times Harry actually calmed down from his work in the basement or the Wizengamot Study. More laws than any of the teens were willing to admit to had been written for werewolves, each given to Remus upon their completion for his opinion on them, sometimes getting tweaked after he had his say.

Tension was running high in Marauder Manor — that Harry knew for sure — and he had a feeling the rest of Britain’s Wizarding world wasn’t much better.

…

A knock sounded on Amelia’s office door before it opened to reveal Arthur Weasley, exactly on time, just as she had requested.

“You called, Minister?” he said, his voice curious. Amelia just smiled slightly and gestured to the chair across from her, and Arthur closed the door behind him before taking a seat.

“Yes, I did, and call me Amelia when we’re in my office, Arthur,” she replied. “We’ve known each other for many years, and my change in position doesn’t change that at all.”

“Of course, Amelia,” Arthur said, and Amelia saw he relaxed slightly. “What do you need from me?”

“You have two children still at Hogwarts, correct?” Amelia asked, already knowing the answer as she knew at least one of the children well, though Arthur wasn’t to know that.

“Yes,” Arthur agreed. “Ron will be a sixth year and Ginny a fifth.”

“Susan has mentioned them both,” Amelia commented. “She’s good friends with Ginny and friendly with Ron, I’ve been told. It’s quite unfortunate that they haven’t had the chance to see one another this summer.”

“I have to agree,” Arthur sighed, “but with everything that’s going on and —”

“And the Order of the Phoenix, you just can’t chance letting them leave Headquarters, no?” Amelia finished before Arthur could even continue. She saw that Arthur looked completely shocked and quickly interpreted that look to be that Dumbledore had withheld information yet again. “Dumbledore didn’t inform you that I know quite a bit about the Order including its members and most, if not all, of what you’ve done since Voldemort returned?”

“No, he hasn’t, but I’ll be sure to mention it to the others,” Arthur muttered under his breath in annoyance. “If you know about the Order already, why am I here?”

“As I was going to say, Susan is friends with your two children and would love to see them before school,” Amelia continued, following the plan she and the other adults had come up with after seeing how Harry had been acting over the summer compared to during Christmas, a few of the teenagers helping. He had been slowly drawing in on himself when not with anyone else.

“When she goes to Diagon Alley in three days, I’m going to be assigning a good number of Aurors from the Second Force to be at the Alley, some of them always staying with her. One of those with her will be Auror Tonks from the First Force as I want her to be in charge there. I’m offering to have Ron and Ginny go with Susan to do their school shopping.”

Amelia saw that Arthur was a bit surprised by the offer, but he also had a bit of a resigned look on his face. Before he even opened his mouth to speak, Amelia knew what he was going to say, though she let him say it.

“I’d be fine with it, but Molly…” Arthur trailed off.

“My only request would be that no one besides Auror Tonks from the Order is permitted to be in the Alley, and trust me, every Auror in the second Force can recognize an Order member on sight in seconds,” Amelia stated, not lying at all. Plus, Samuel, Tracey, and Harry had worked together the week before when plans were made for this trip to make a Map of Diagon Alley, one for each Auror Force as well as Marauder Manor. They would know immediately if an Order member was at the Alley. They didn’t want anyone from the Order there so that they wouldn’t be able to report Harry’s presence, nor who he was with.

“Molly won’t like that at all, nor will Dumbledore,” Arthur said cautiously.

“Please, assure your wife that we’re sending the best fighters we have from the Second Force, and _I’ll_ deal with Dumbledore if you send him to me,” Amelia stated. “My niece would like to see her friends without the possibility of someone reporting to Dumbledore being there.”

“But Tonks —” Arthur began, only to have Amelia cut him off.

“Knows that, as an Auror, there are things she is forbidden to say to anyone on the threat of losing her job, this assignment being one of them,” Amelia said forcefully. “If you can convince your wife, Dumbledore will be dealt with.”

“Why don’t you trust Albus?” Arthur asked after a moment or three. “He’s trying to help us win the war against You-Know-Who.”

“Because I don’t agree with his methods,” Amelia said blandly. “He kidnapped Harry Potter when the boy was about to be sent to a safe house under the Fidelius, not allowing him to leave and forcing the teen to find his own means of _escaping_ what he felt was a prison.” Arthur began to protest, but Amelia stopped him before he could, both knowing he couldn’t deny it. “Dumbledore is also trying to fight the Dark Lord with a quill rather than a wand. This war won’t be won without fighting and death and loss, but he won’t accept this. I won’t work with him.”

“Very well,” Arthur sighed, accepting that Amelia had her own opinions that were quite true, even if Amelia knew he still stood with Dumbledore. “I’ll speak to Molly and try to convince her to let Ron and Ginny go with Susan in three days’ time to Diagon Alley. You’ll get my response tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Arthur,” Amelia said with a smile. “I truly do hope they can come as I have a feeling they miss being with friends just as much as Susan misses seeing them both.”

Arthur nodded sadly before standing and leaving the office. Now all Amelia could do was hope that he managed to convince his wife that their children needed some freedom away from her and the Order.

…

The evening two days before their trip to Diagon Alley, Harry couldn’t help but let out a cheer after threading the piece of leather through the _final_ pendant in the shape of the Hogwarts crest. There were now enough for every single student at Hogwarts from the new first years to the seventh years, each with a leather cord and Portkey.

“ _Finally_ ,” he sighed, collapsing sideways onto the couch he had been sitting on, only to have his head lifted so that Tracey could sit there, his head placed in her lap.

On other couches, Harry could hear the others begin to fall back against the couch, some mimicking him in falling to the side. The teens had just spent hours stringing the cords through the pendants after checking that the Portkeys were active with a spell. Yes, it was worth it for sure, but Merlin, it was _exhausting_!

“Good work, you lot,” Samuel commented as he took in the boxes of necklaces on either side of the table they had been working around, just throwing the pendants into the boxes when done with each. “Tomorrow I’ll send most of both Forces out to deliver them and the notes you wrote, also informing families that Sunday is a good day to go shopping for supplies if they haven’t already gone as security will be increased.”

Harry heard murmurs of acknowledgement from his friends, making one himself with his eyes closed. He could tell he wasn’t the only one on the edge of sleep, which wasn’t much of a surprise, though Harry said nothing of it.

No, all he wanted to do was rest, knowing that tomorrow he would truly appreciate the fact that they were done for another reason than the chance to rest.

…

At nine in the morning on a Saturday, Aurors reported in for work. Most were given a list of five or six homes along with a small box with however many pendants that number of households would need. By ten in the morning, every Auror assigned to the job was ready to leave and given the go ahead, knowing they had to pretend to be looking for protections around the homes as well as handing these out.

All around the UK Aurors appeared on doorsteps of various homes, unnoticed by any due to charms placed on them. Doors were opened by parents and sometimes children or teens. Pendants with notes attached to them were passed over to those attending Hogwarts after they were called to the door.

The usual words spoken were: “This is for you, and if you don’t know what it is or how to use it, everything you need to know is in the note. Please keep the fact that we’re giving you this to yourselves as, if You-Know-Who finds out, they won’t be effective. By the way Ma’am/Sir, tomorrow would be an excellent day to visit Diagon Alley as Minister Bones is upping security there tomorrow, if you and your child(ren) have yet to get their supplies for the year.”

The only exceptions to this were those families of first years, where the Aurors sometimes were asked to explain more to the child, or the Muggle parents had questions about Hogwarts or the Wizarding world in general, also curious as to why their child(ren) needed such an object.

Still, by noon, everyone attending Hogwarts except for a select few had pendants. Those who didn’t were those staying at either Marauder Manor or Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, for those students would be getting them the next morning when they went off to Diagon Alley.

The Wizarding world’s children had a way to safety, now, and those who knew of it felt much safer for it.


	8. Chapter Eight

Albus Dumbledore was a lot more conservative than usual during that night’s meeting of the Order of the Phoenix on the eve of the Diagon Alley trip for those in Marauder Manor. Ginny noticed it immediately and wondered why.

She glanced at Ron as they both held their Journals in their laps, open to a private conversation with Samuel Davis. The earpieces they had on were also connected to the Journals even though they were wireless, with the other part in the dining room where the meeting was being held. This allowed the meeting to be directly transferred to the Journal, something the twins had cooked up with a little help from the makers of the Journals.  
  
“I’ve been informed that tomorrow is the day most of Hogwarts will be going to Diagon Alley as Amelia Bones has declared that security will be upped for the day,” Professor Dumbledore informed the Order. “Because of this, she has stated that any and all Order members found at Diagon Alley tomorrow will be put in Ministry holding cells until the beginning of school except for Nymphadora as she will be in charge of the security while also following Amelia’s niece, Susan Bones, around the Alley as she shops.”  
  
“Amelia also requested that we allow Ginny and Ron to go to the Alley tomorrow for their shopping with Susan,” Ginny’s father added, and Ginny blinked as she shared a look with Ron, who looked just as shocked. “After much discussion, Molly and I have agreed to this because the two have been cooped up in here all summer long and need a chance to see a friend or two without their parents or other Order members with them. This is the best chance for it.”  
  
Ginny couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face. She knew that this was a way for her to see Harry for a day more than anything, and she was truly glad for it as she hadn’t seen him in a month and a half. Talking via Journals just wasn’t the same.  
  
“I’ve also been informed by a few friends of mine that each and every Hogwarts student, including the incoming first years, has been given a pendant that is a Portkey to a safe house in case of attack except for those here at Headquarters,” Professor Dumbledore continued. “Aurors handed them out this morning, which is also when the news of extra security was released to families of students.”  
  
“They’re protecting our students,” Professor McGonagall noted, and Ginny recognized that her Head of House was pleased by the thought.  
  
“Subtly,” Professor Snape, Harry’s Head of House, added quietly. “I wonder which Slytherin had a hand in this scheme.”  
  
“Director Davis was the one to hand out the pendants this morning,” Tonks said helpfully. “He was a Slytherin while at Hogwarts, correct? The Director and Minister most likely came up with this together.”  
  
“Perhaps…” Professor Snape said slowly, and Ginny knew that he recognized Harry’s style in the idea.  
  
“Now, is there anything to report?” Professor Dumbledore asked.  
  
Ginny pulled out the earpiece, letting Ron listen while hers continued to provide the conversation to Samuel. In her mind, she was thinking about how she and Ron would get to go to Diagon Alley tomorrow, and she would finally see Harry again.  
  
That would be worth the way she knew her mother would be acting when they both returned.

…

While the meeting of the Order occurred, Harry and Tracey shared glances before nodding once and heading to different parts of the Manor. Tracey was headed to the basement where Daphne was practicing alone with her throwing knives while Harry went out to the grounds to find Blaise, who was running around as a bear.  
  
“Hey, Blaise, I need your help in the study!” Harry called once he was in hearing distance. Blaise quickly rushed over to him and waited in his bear form until Harry transformed into a wolf so they could race back to the Manor.  
  
When they got there, they changed back, and Blaise asked, “What do you need?”  
  
“Come up to the study with me, and I’ll show you,” Harry replied, gesturing for Blaise to lead the way. His friend did with a shrug, willing to help and not noticing the grin on Harry’s face when Blaise turned to go up the stairs.  
  
They reached the study at the same time as Daphne and Tracey, making both Daphne and Blaise turn to glare suspiciously at the one who had found them. Harry and Tracey just smiled similar innocent smiles before suddenly shoving the pair into the Wizengamot Study, Harry waving his wand to activate the enchantments around the room that they had set up. Those two wouldn’t be leaving the study until they had not only snogged but also agreed to finally date.  
  
“Success,” Harry and Tracey hissed together as they shared a high-five and grins.  
  
Both headed downstairs to the kitchen to see if Sirius had left any biscuits in the pantry, knowing that Daphne and Blaise would most likely take a while.

…

“They locked us in!” Daphne snarled in annoyance. “It’s one of those spells that only _they_ know how to deactivate, meaning we’re stuck in here.”  
  
She threw herself down onto one of the couches in the study, laying down on it. Blaise watched her, still by the door, until he decided to sit down on the couch across from hers, as there were now four in the study after the others joined Harry, Theo, Draco, and Neville in creating laws and ideas for the Wizengamot.  
  
The moment he sat, a roll of parchment appeared in his lap, and he blinked before picking it up. His name was on the outside of the scroll, and Blaise knew that it was from Harry and Tracey, even without recognizing the latter’s handwriting.  
  
_Blaise,  
  
You’re the one we’re giving this to because we have a feeling that you’re the calmer of the two of you at the moment. Daphne is probably still angry with us and wants to hurt us the moment she sees us._  
  
Blaise looked up and saw that their thoughts were, indeed, true as Daphne had yet to even notice he had a note in his hands. Shaking his head slightly, Blaise turned back to the scroll.  
  
_Harry and I have been arguing over when to do this to you, and it was agreed — with help from Ginny — that the night before our trip to Diagon Alley would be best. We’ve all spent the past few months waiting for the two of you to finally stop dancing around one another and just snog. Sort of how we were waiting for Harry and Ginny, though they were doing that on purpose in fourth year.  
  
**Oi! Trace, that’s not nice!**  
  
Harry stole the pencil from me when he saw what I had written and wrote that in pen, so I can’t get rid of it. Sorry about that. Anyway, I think you now know what Harry and I want from you. Until  everything we want happens, the magic of our spells won’t deactivate, so if you want to get out of there sometime tonight, I’d get on it!  
  
Tracey  
**Harry**_  
  
Blaise couldn’t help the groan he let out when he realized what they meant, the note crumpling in his fist as he closed one of them. The other hand went to his hair, grasping it in annoyance. _Great, just great_ , he thought. _Now I’ve got to snog Daphne and ask her out, or we’ll be stuck in here for **hours.**_  
  
“What’s wrong?” Daphne asked, and Blaise realized she had sat up and was looking at him. “What’s that in your hand?”  
  
“A note from Harry and Tracey, and that’s what’s wrong,” Blaise muttered, knowing she could hear him. Daphne raised an eyebrow, and he knew he would have to elaborate. “They claim we’re acting like Harry and Ginny did in our fourth year, except without doing it as a prank on everyone.”  
  
“So we’re stuck in here until…?” Daphne asked, trailing off at the end, unable to finish the thought, and Blaise just nodded. “Ugh.” Daphne’s head hit the back of the couch as she fell back against it, her eyes closed.  
  
“Is there something _wrong_ with that?” Blaise almost demanded, feeling a bit hurt by Daphne’s reaction to the news.  
  
“Oh absolutely _nothing_ is wrong, Blaise,” Daphne snarled sarcastically. “We’re just _stuck_ in here until we snog and agree to date even though we’ve been ignoring the tension between us since the Yule Ball! _Absolutely nothing_ is wrong, nothing at all.”  
  
When she put it like that, Blaise had to admit that Daphne had a point, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. So, yes, they _had_ been avoiding the tension between them for ages, but she acted as if being stuck in here was a _bad_ thing when Blaise could tell that it was probably what they needed.  
  
“Daphne…” he said slowly, and she looked up at him with scared blue eyes. That was when he finally realized why Daphne had been avoiding this: She was afraid to lose her independence.  
  
Daphne had always been so independent, taking help when she needed it, but preferring not to always need someone. Blaise now knew that she thought being with him would take that away from her, and she had probably been hiding this fear for years.  
  
Moving to sit next to Daphne on her couch, Blaise pulled her into his arms. She tensed for a moment before leaning against him. They just sat there in silence for a little while, Blaise trying to figure out how to word his thoughts.  
  
“Daphe,” he said again, softly, “I don’t want you to ever change. If you do, you won’t be my Daphne anymore.”  
  
He felt her stiffen again at his words, but he just continued to hold her until she relaxed again. “Thank you,” he heard her whisper, and Blaise smiled slightly. Daphne was independent and had a strong will and would do anything to get her way, but she was still vulnerable at times; this was just one of those times.  
  
Turning Daphne around in his arms, Blaise lifted her head up as he lowered his own, eyes closing as their lips gently met.

…

“Finally,” Harry muttered to Tracey as they finished off the last of the biscuits. The magic around the study had just reported to them both that Blaise and Daphne had kissed.  
  
“Now we’ll have to deal with the two of them dating, though,” Tracey added in an undertone as they left the kitchen to go to Harry’s room, not wanting anyone else to know what they had been up to with Blaise and Daphne.  
  
“As long as they keep the couple stuff down like the rest of us, we’ll deal,” Harry stated quietly.  
  
“Do you really see them doing that?” Tracey had to ask, and Harry met her eyes. He knew she could tell that he had absolutely no idea how those two would act as a couple.  
  
“We can only pray that they do,” he finally said before opening the door to his room. _They could only hope._

…

Harry stepped out of the Floo and into the Leaky Cauldron, one of the last from Marauder Manor to arrive. He had his weapons hidden in various places on his person, most shrunken into his pockets or in two of the pouches on his belt. One of those pouches was actually where he was planning on putting his supplies as he shopped, rather than holding them.  
  
“Harry!” a voice called, and he looked up just in time to see a redheaded blur rush into him, almost knocking them both over if his instincts hadn’t kicked in and made him take a step back.  
  
“Ginny?” he said in disbelief, looking down at his girlfriend, who was hugging him tightly. “What are you doing here? How are you here?”  
  
“Amelia convinced my dad, who convinced Mum, that Ron and I should be allowed to see our friends without Order protection while shopping for our supplies,” Ginny replied happily, looking up at him. “She gave us each a pouch of money and sent us on our way a few minutes ago.”  
  
Harry grinned happily and lowered his head to give her a quick kiss. When he pulled away, Harry looked at those around them to see that all of the adults, Tracey, Hermione, Susan, Justin, Hannah, and Daphne looked pleased with themselves while everyone there looked happy to see him and Ginny together.  
  
“Did you lot plan this?” he asked, looking at those who looked pleased, arms still holding Ginny to him even as she turned to see who he was speaking to.  
  
“We could all tell that you missed Ginny,” Hermione said as most nodded.  
  
“We thought it would be a good surprise,” Remus added with a grin.  
  
“Thanks,” Harry said, truly meaning it. “Now come on, we have shopping to do.”  
  
Everyone laughed as Harry grabbed Ginny’s hand and began to lead the group out of the pub and into Diagon Alley, which was full of shoppers. The teens were all given their own pendants to wear with instructions to use them if anything happened. Students caught sight of Harry and called out greetings to him, which he returned as best he could.  
  
When someone grabbed Harry’s other hand, he turned his head to see Euan grasping it. His face was a bit pale, and Harry realized that the twelve-year-old was afraid to see his friends again after the attack. Harry tightened his hold on Euan’s hand for a moment before continuing to walk towards Flourish and Blotts for his school books.  
  
As they found their books, most getting extra books where they could, especially those taking NEWT classes as the homework was said to be killer at times, Harry knew that Ginny had seen Euan holding his hand. He was grateful that she said nothing at all about it, most likely understanding what the problem was.  
  
Harry was trying not to groan as he realized how many books he had just accumulated. As he was taking Care of Magical Creatures, Transfiguration, Potions, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Ancient Runes, he had quite a pile of books. They were all quickly shrunken and put into his pouch, but Harry knew reading them would be a pain.  
  
Their next stop was the Apothecary for their Potions supplies. Tracey, Theo, Hannah, and Justin didn’t get anything as they were dropping the course while everyone else purchased extra ingredients. Harry had decided that he was going to use some of his spare time to make extra potions for pranks, and he knew that he would need more supplies than the others, picking up ingredients not even on the list. The others were getting extra in case they messed up.  
  
After purchasing fresh ink, quills, and parchment, they stopped by the owl shop to get treats for the various owls of the group, Hedwig included. Harry also slipped into another pet store to get a few mice for Ankh, knowing he would be pleased. Then they went to get fresh robes for everyone, Harry forcing Ron and Ginny to accept them as a gift; they bought casual robes, new dress robes, and school robes, for one never knew when they would need robes.  
  
A stop at Quality Quidditch Supplies was a must for the group with so many players among them, and Harry found some new pads there. A few others also purchased pads, while many just located magazines to read, though Harry didn’t. Ginny bought herself some pads, and Harry knew she was going to be trying out for the Gryffindor team this year, most likely as a Chaser. It had actually surprised him to find out that Ron was their Captain this year, but he realized he probably shouldn’t have been all that surprised, knowing Ron.  
  
They all had one last stop in Diagon Alley before going out to Muggle London for pencils, pens, and notebooks: Fred and George’s shop.  
  
Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes was a shop that was impossible to miss with its orange paintjob and huge sign. Plus, the place was completely _packed_ with Hogwarts students finding pranking supplies for the school year.  
  
“Harry! Ginny! Ron! Everyone else!” one of the twins, who Harry recognized as Fred once he saw him, called as he caught sight of the group looking around the very-full store. “Come on into the back so we can talk easier.”  
  
The group followed Fred into the back, picking up George along the way. In the back room, they found boxes of products piled all over the place. Everyone began to find seats on the various boxes. Harry pulled Ginny onto his lap while Euan sat on the floor by his feet.  
  
“This is where we keep the more practical products,” George explained.  
  
“We’ve got our Peruvian Darkness Powder back here, if you need more,” Fred continued, “as well as a number of other products I believe you’ll find useful.”  
  
Fred and George moved to two boxes and pulled out a pouch each. They began pulling out the supplies in them, showing that the pouches were packed identically full of things they’d use in a fight. Not only did they have cloaks that repelled basic hexes, but they also had things to cause distractions, basic goggles to allow them to see in the Peruvian Darkness Powder, and various prank objects that would be good in a fight for things such as tripping people. There was a lot more in the pouches, but the twins told them that there was a roll of parchment in each pouch that described each object in it.  
  
“We made one for each of you, and we’ve been working on making an entire stock of these to leave at Hogwarts for the HPs,” George told them.  
  
“This will be quite useful,” Harry said as he held up his pouch. “Thanks, and keep it up, please.”  
  
“Why of course, O Leader of Leaders,” Fred cried, bowing in Harry’s direction as the others laughed at his antics.  
  
“You lot can go check out the wares out front and take anything you wish, free of charge,” George stated with a grin.  
  
“None of you pay here,” Fred agreed with a nod.  
  
Everyone but Harry, Ginny, Euan, and the adults left the back room, the twins heading out to be sure no one stole anything from their shop and to make sure nothing was running low. Harry was looking at the pouch in his hand, his brow furrow as he tried to figure out what idea was trying to form in his head. There was something he was just barely forgetting, something that would help them…  
  
“Ah-ha!” he exclaimed, looking up and snapping as he remembered. “Sirius, I think you and I need to stop at Gringotts for a bit.”  
  
“Why?” his godfather asked curiously.  
  
“There’s something I need to get from my Storage Vault, and it’s not like Gin can’t get what I need from Muggle London,” Harry said, looking at Ginny, who was still in his lap. She nodded in agreement with what he said. “Please, Sirius? It’s for the HPs.”  
  
“Oh, fine, we’ll go after we leave here,” Sirius sighed, and Harry grinned.  
  
“Great!” Harry said. “Come on, Gin, Euan, we’ve got pranking supplies to collect.”  
  
“Hogwarts won’t know what hit it,” Euan commented with a smile as he followed Harry and Ginny from the room.  
  
“No, no it won’t,” Harry agreed with a laugh as Tracey joined them to start finding all they wanted.

…

“What are we getting from down here, Harry?” Sirius asked as Harry entered his Family Storage Vault the moment it was opened.  
  
“These,” Harry informed his godfather, gesturing to the wall in front of them.  
  
“Oh,” Sirius said. “That makes a lot of sense.”  
  
“I thought so,” Harry agreed as he used his wand to take down the numerous sets of dragonhide armor from the wall, placing them all into a weightless trunk that he had found in the Vault. Once all of the armor was in the trunk, Harry closed and shrunk it. “Come on, we’d better catch up to the others.”

…

“What was that about?” Ginny asked as she and the others finally returned to the Leaky Cauldron with bags full of pens, pencils, and notebooks, Ginny handing him what he had wanted.  
  
“I was getting the dragonhide armor out of my Vault,” Harry explained quietly before turning to the adults. “Now what are we going to do?”  
  
“We’re all going back to the Manor, unless our two Weasleys object to finally getting to see it,” Daniella explained, and both Ron and Ginny quickly shook their heads against the idea of objecting. “Amelia told your parents that you’d be back by dinner, so we’ll have you over until around four, when you’ll just Floo back.”  
  
After that, the group quickly Flooed back to Marauder Manor, where Daniella and Samantha quickly left the teens to go help the house-elves prepare lunch and Daniel, Sirius, and Remus went to one of their studies to talk. It left the rest to show Ron and Ginny around the Manor, so they decided to begin with the bedrooms so that everyone could dump their stuff in them.  
  
“Hannah and Susan share that room, Hermione stays there, Daphne and Astoria share that room, Draco has his own room over there,” Harry was telling Ron and Ginny as the others had rushed into their rooms to put their stuff away properly, Euan following the three. “Tracey has her own room at the end of the hall while Blaise and Theo share the one across from it. In this room, Maya shares with both Natalie and Graham because Graham annoys the others too much, so no one wants to share with him, but the girls are used to him. They’ve got a sheet to separate the room. Justin usually shares with Terry in there while Padma is usually with Hermione. Luna stays with Astoria and Daphne as well, now that I think about it.”  
  
“Where do you, Euan, and the adults stay?” Ron asked curiously as they reached the stairs.  
  
“Up here,” Euan said as he suddenly led the way up the stairs. “Sirius stays in this room and shares the study next to it with Remus, who sleeps in here. Tracey’s parents sleep here with Samuel and Daniel using this study. The Greengrasses use this room. Harry and I, though, sleep in here.”  
  
With that, he opened the door to the room Harry and he shared, moving quickly to where his trunk sat open along one of the walls so that he could put his stuff away. Harry moved to his own trunk, putting some of his stuff in there while the rest went onto the desk or the bookshelf, Euan doing the same.  
  
When Harry turned to look at Ron and Ginny, Ginny was smiling at the walls while Ron’s mouth was wide open. That was when Harry suddenly remembered that Ron had never been to Grimmauld Place, so this was his first time seeing Harry’s bedroom setup. Ginny, on the other hand, had been in his room so often during the war games that it was anything but a surprise.  
  
“This is your room?” Ron finally asked, and both he and Euan nodded. “This is bloody brilliant!”  
  
“Thanks, Ron,” Harry said. “Samuel, Remus, Sirius, and Daniel charmed it for me. Now come on, we’ve got the rest of the Manor to show you!”

…

After the tour of the Manor and grounds, the teens had gone down to the basement to have some fun duels. Harry and Ginny decided to sit them out, both sitting along the wall of the basement and watching their friends all practice, even Ron.  
  
“I’m glad they set this up,” Harry finally said. “It’s been a long summer without getting to see you.”  
  
“I know what you mean,” Ginny agreed with a sigh, leaning her head onto Harry’s shoulder. “It was such a surprise to hear about this during the Order meeting last night, but I’m really glad Amelia convinced Dad to do this.”  
  
“Two more weeks and we’ll be together for almost ten months, at least,” Harry said.  
  
“True, very true,” Ginny had to say. They fell silent for a few minutes, Harry watching as Graham and Euan dueled again, Natalie judging it and giving both, though mainly Euan, advice. “How did the whole Daphne and Blaise thing go?” Ginny suddenly asked, and Harry turned to see that they were both sparring with their swords together.  
  
“Well, they got out of the study,” Harry informed her with a laugh. “It took them over three hours to leave the room, of course, but they eventually did.”  
  
“So they’re going out now?” Ginny asked to clarify.  
  
“Yes, though they haven’t said anything yet,” Harry said with a grin.  
  
“ _Finally_ ,” Ginny sighed in relief. They both laughed quietly. “You know, that’s probably how everyone felt about you and me.”  
  
“Gin, I _know_ that’s how they felt,” Harry stated with a light laugh. “I’m still being teased about it here and there, though they always shut up when I remind them about how good we got them with our prank.”  
  
“True,” Ginny replied, also laughing lightly. “By the way, Potter, I don’t believe I’ve gotten a proper hello, and we’ve been together all morning.”  
  
Turning, Harry saw the teasing glint in her brown eyes, and he had to smile. “Thank you for the reminder,” he said quietly, leaning in towards Ginny.  
  
His lips quickly covered hers, and he knew she was smiling just as much as he was at getting to do this two weeks before either of them had expected. It had been an amazing surprise.

 


	9. Chapter Nine

In the dark of night, as most of the students of Hogwarts looked through their new books just purchased that very day, Death Eaters began to pop into existence in many different towns and villages around the UK, all of them Muggle. A handful of these towns and villages were home to many Muggle-born and Half-Blood students of Hogwarts.

Lights began to flicker in the buildings, reds, greens, yellows, purples, pinks, blues, and more flashing through the sky, almost like fireworks. Fires flamed ablaze, screams filled the air, and the smell of death began to build up as the Death Eaters attacked and killed without a care in the world.

Those families with Hogwarts students were suddenly full of movement. The households with adult wizards or witches had objects flying around the house into trunks that were then shrunken while those with only Hogwarts students in the home were throwing things into suitcases and trunks. Some of the Hogwarts students were old enough to know how to pack with magic, and those families also had things flying around the house, but the rest had to take a bit more time by adding things to the trunks individually, rather than all at once. Finally, though, trunks and suitcases were packed, lightened, and shrunken by students of all ages as the HPs had taught them how to do that for their weapons, which allowed them to do it with their bags.

Before the Death Eaters could attack the homes of families with magic in them, pendant Portkeys were activated, families and luggage being dragged from all over the UK to a single home in London that was protected by almost every ward and spell except for the Fidelius Charm and a few of the darkest ones.

In Marauder Manor, an alarm was heard throughout the house, sending every single occupant into a state of alertness as the teenagers rushed to their rooms to gather weapons while the adults tried to find out what the problem was. When they realized the alarm was the one from the pendant Portkeys, everyone quickly prepared to either Floo or Portkey to Grimmauld Place so that they could take care of those who had escaped.

Hundreds of Muggles died in the various attacks that night, but not a single family that had a Hogwarts student in it lost a member of the family this time.

…

Harry couldn’t help but be saddened as he saw a dozen families all standing in the living room of Grimmauld Place, looking scared and worried. He recognized the Creevey brothers, Rose Zeller, Robert Chambers, Julian Paterson, Demelza Robins, Sally Fawcett, Lavender Brown, Shawn Sparrow, Spencer James, Zoe Knight, Norman White, and Janice Smith as the students among the crowd of people in the room.

“Harry!” a large number of the students called when they saw him appear in the corner of the room after using his Portkey. At their calls, the adults, siblings, and rest of the students turned quickly to see those from Marauder Manor Portkeying in next or him or entering from the doorway that led to the kitchen and Floo.

“Are you all okay?” Harry asked, moving over to where the students had gathered.

“We’re all fine,” Colin Creevey said. “The Death Eaters didn’t reach any of our houses before we Portkeyed out of them.”

“But our towns and homes…” Lavender added softly, her eyes filling with tears. Harry knew it was because she was thinking about her Muggle friends who were most likely now dead.

Looking up, Harry saw that Samuel was speaking to the parents in the room to find out where their various homes were so he could send the Aurors out as soon as possible to deal with the Death Eaters. Around him, his friends were all comforting their classmates and the Muggle siblings of said classmates. Some were young and might actually be going to Hogwarts in the next few years, but most were obviously Muggle siblings as they were older than eleven.

“We’ve got rooms here and other safe houses so that you’ll all have somewhere to live,” Harry told those in front of him. “It’s the best we can do, but we’ll help you as best we can.” They all nodded in thanks before turning to go to their parents, hugging them tightly.

“This is going to cause more fear in the Wizarding world,” Hermione commented as they watched their friends talk with their families.

“Yes, but more caution isn’t a bad thing,” Daphne reminded her. “As long as people are being careful because of their fear, the number of deaths will go down.”

“Not in the Muggle world,” Justin commented quietly, most likely thinking of his own family.

“Unfortunately, there’s not much we can do for the Muggles who are unaware of the war,” Tracey said sadly. “Let Amelia and my dad deal with it as best they can.”

Everyone nodded in agreement at her words, and Harry was pleased to see that they all accepted that they had done all they could to help the innocents of the war. Of course, he had already spoken to Samuel about making more pendants for the Hogwarts students so that they could leave the ones they had at home. Samuel had agreed, and they had been working on making new pendants that took the students to Hogwarts for Hogsmeade weekends as well as a way to escape, just in case.

When he looked around the room, Harry saw that Amelia, Samuel, Remus, Daniel, and Sirius were all missing while Samantha and Daniella were talking with the families in the room. He knew that Amelia and Samuel were at the Ministry, and Harry wouldn’t have been surprised if the other three were upstairs setting up rooms and making them larger so that more people could stay in them at one time. The students wouldn’t mind bunking together in two dormitory-like rooms as long as there were enough beds.

Harry then watched as his friends went out among their housemates to comfort them and try to distract them from what had occurred. Seeing Euan among them appeared to make the teenagers who had escaped feel a bit guilty about feeling saddened by this because they realized that they had gotten off easy that night. Euan had lost his family and had been forced to fight while they got away without even having the Death Eaters in their homes.

Of course, Euan was waving off their words, saying that the fact that they had lived and escaped just showed that the preparations had worked. That was all Euan had cared about when it came to the attacks; he didn’t want anyone else going through what he had if it could be prevented.

“This school year is going to be hard,” he heard Maya say from beside him, and Harry nodded in agreement without even looking at her. “We aren’t going to get this lucky during every attack, and our friends are going to lose their families without even having a chance of protecting them.”

“And they’ll have people there to help them through it,” Harry told her, “just as Euan has had us to help him.”

“I just hope we won’t have to do it that often,” Maya said as Sirius came back into the room and announced that two of the rooms had been set up with bunk beds for the teenagers while the other rooms were ready for adults and younger kids, though Harry knew he and his friends would be returning to Marauder Manor shortly.

“Me too, Maya, me too,” he sighed.

…

The next morning, the front page of the _Daily Prophet_ reported the simultaneous attacks, stating that all families with witches or wizards in them had escaped without harm, though numbers pushing fifteen-hundred were stated for the Muggles who had died in the night.

All around Britain’s Wizarding world, families saw the article and felt relieved that it wasn’t them before realizing that it could end up being them if they didn’t work to protect themselves. Protection was quickly becoming the goal in the minds of the adults, especially those with children or those who were potentially large targets for Lord Voldemort.

Fear was reigning throughout the Wizarding world, but underneath it was hope that the Ministry under Amelia Bones with Samuel Davis as Director of the Magical Law Enforcement would see them through the war without the horror that the first war had been.

…

Harry had to try not to laugh as the others tried to take him out two days after their shopping trip. Only one or two of them had figured out why he was allowing most spells to just hit him rather than dodging, and it was quite amusing. He had both his dragonhide armor and the cloak from the twins on right now, and he was dueling all of the teens in Marauder Manor except for Tracey and Hermione, who had stepped out once it all began to make sense in their minds.

Maya suddenly dropped out as Harry hit Neville on the arm with a Cutting Curse, barely touching him. As he continued to fire Cutting Curses and other hexes that would maim his friends without knocking them out like a Stunner would, Harry watched in amusement as his friends slowly began figuring out why he wasn’t being taken out by obvious direct hits. First Daphne, then Draco, Theo, Blaise, Graham, Astoria, and Natalie stopped fighting him. Euan caught on quickly after that, and Susan followed suit. Finally, Hannah, Justin, and Neville caught on and stopped their attacks.

“Took you lot long enough,” Harry commented, slightly panting, as he grinned in amusement.

“Why are you wearing armor and your cloak?” Euan asked curiously, and Harry shot him a direct smile.

“Because this is how the HPs are going to learn to fight from now on,” Harry informed his friends, and they all gaped at him. “Sirius and I picked up all of the dragonhide armor from my Vault, and he went to his the next day to get even more.”

“Between the two of you, we’ll have enough armor to protect at least the seventh, sixth, and fifth years, possibly even the fourth years,” Hermione quickly said, probably doing the math in her head.

“The armor will let us have extra protection in a full-out battle so that there will be fewer wounds,” Susan added.

“Up to a point,” Maya pointed out, and the others all turned to her while Harry nodded and pulled off the clothes covering the armor. “See? The main part of the torso and legs are covered, as well as most of the arms, but there are gaps.” Everyone looked at where she was pointing and began to nod.

“The elbows, knees, and that small part between the top and bottom parts of the armor,” Justin commented, saying aloud what they could all see. “Those who made the armor decided to leave out the elbows and knees rather than try to make them bend with the person, didn’t they?”

“To be fair, it’s quite hard to do that with dragonhide with how resistant it is to magic,” Draco reminded them while looking at the armor closely. “Still, the armor sets Harry has are quite good and will give us a lot more protection than we’d normally have, especially because I believe this armor fixes itself if a spell breaks it?” His last words were in the form of a question rather than a statement.

“That’s what I’ve seen,” Harry agreed with a nod before turning to pull on his pants, shirt, and cloak again. “We’re all going to spend the rest of the summer training in a set of armor so that we adjust to the difference in how we fight. Fortunately, it weighs as much as a thin set of clothes does, so it won’t slow us down with weight, but you’ll notice your movements need to change slightly to work the way you want them to.”

Everyone nodded and headed in the direction that Harry gestured, where the armor was waiting for them. He knew they would believe him as everyone except Euan could remember how much he had complained about having to learn to fight in his dragonhide armor while training for the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament.

_At least everyone will be protected more in battle with this armor if Hogwarts is attacked,_ Harry thought to himself while moving to grab a water bottle until the others were ready for more training.

…

Harry smiled a wolf’s smile as he ran across the grounds on all four of his paws, Euan laughing in delight on his back with his hands gripping Harry’s long fur tightly to stay on. Even though everyone, even Euan, had agreed that the young Gryffindor wouldn’t be learning how to be an Animagus, Euan still got to enjoy the fact that his friends were able to turn into animals.

Daphne suddenly ran up beside the two of them in her lion form, and Harry barked in her direction, gaining her attention so that they could share a grin. She ran on when both of them could smell Blaise in his bear form catching up to them, Harry running slower than normal due to Euan being on his back. Blaise suddenly flew by Harry as he tried to catch up to his girlfriend, the pair having finally been forced to inform the entire Manor by Harry and Tracey nudging Astoria into catching them snogging in Daphne’s shared room with her and Luna. That had been three days before, and it was just four more until they left for Hogwarts.

“ _Harry_!” a voice barked from behind him, and Harry slowed enough to look to see Padfoot running to catch up to him. They had found out long ago that Terry, Sirius, and he could understand one another if what they tried to say was very basic.

“ _Yes_?” Harry replied with a bark once Padfoot was running beside him.

“ _Wanted to catch up_ ,” Padfoot said with a grin, and Harry rolled his eyes but continued running around the grounds.

He could see a few birds flying above, the sun shining behind them and putting them into shadow. Three cats were wrestling closer to the Manor while two foxes chased one another in a game of tag near them. Daphne and Blaise were still running ahead of Harry, Euan, and Sirius even as a cheetah and a tiger raced past the trio, Susan and Justin racing to catch up to the pair ahead. Hannah was galloping around the grounds as a horse with a snake around her neck and a cougar following her, Maya and Hermione obviously enjoying it.

“Can we go faster, Harry?” Euan suddenly asked in his ear, and Harry grinned again before speeding up and making Euan yell in surprise for a moment before the Gryffindor began laughing. “Thanks!” he yelled happily. Harry just barked in return as Padfoot fought to keep up.

This was a great way to unwind, especially after finding out that there had been another attack the night before that forced another three families to join those already in Grimmauld Place. Voldemort’s raids were widespread and caused a lot of death, but not even Harry, who knew what he would have to do at some point, wanted to worry as he pushed those thoughts from his mind to enjoy the run with his godfather and friends.

…

“Harry?” Euan said softly the morning of August 31st when he heard the older boy wake up beside him. He had been awake for over an hour, thinking hard and trying not to cry at some points.

“Yes, Euan?” Harry replied just as softly, obviously awake but sleepy.

“I — I think I’m ready,” Euan admitted, looking down at his hands while sitting up in Harry’s bed, unwilling to look into the emerald green orbs that he knew were now looking right at him.

“Are you sure?” Harry asked, sitting up quickly and sounding a lot more awake. Euan nodded slowly.

“I need to do this,” Euan whispered. “Before I go back to school, I need to go back.” He was scared out of his mind at the very idea of returning to his home, but Euan knew he needed the closure before being forced to face the entire castle of students, all of whom knew what he had gone through. He needed to do this.

“I’ll tell Samuel at breakfast,” Harry said. There was a pause full of silence, and Euan knew that Harry was thinking quickly even as he tried not to remember the images from the attack on his home. The past month had helped him immensely to regain some of his old happiness, especially when he and the others played games, but he was still full of grief and pain and sadness. Maybe this would help the guilt that was clinging to his heart like chains with weights on them, not leaving him alone, not even after the funeral that had been held for them.

“Do you want me to come with you?” Harry asked softly, and Euan realized that he could either try to be stubborn about this or admit the truth: He couldn’t do this alone. If it had been anyone else, his answer would have automatically been no, but Harry had been there, had seen his family and home after the attack and before it was restored to what it had once been. Harry would understand more than anyone else in Marauder Manor, and Euan didn’t want to be alone.

“Please,” Euan breathed out, knowing Harry would catch it in the silent room with his heightened hearing from his Animagus form.

Harry just nodded silently before getting out of the bed to get dressed. Euan looked back down at his hands until he heard Harry walking up to him before a hand was placed on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw sadness and understanding in Harry’s eyes, but the Slytherin in front of him knew that Euan didn’t want sympathy or pity, just someone to be there with him who would understand what he felt and help him by just being there. Harry had been in his position before with Cedric as well as when people mentioned his parents, and now Harry was using his unfortunate experience to help Euan through his problems.

Harry must have seen that in his eyes as he let go of Euan and left the room, leaving the younger boy to get dressed. Euan knew that he would be getting pitying looks from those who didn’t understand what he was going through down in Marauder Manor, though they all understood a lot better than most of Hogwarts would the next day, so he tried to prepare himself for it as best he could before leaving the room to face the day that he knew would be tough.

…

Euan staggered slightly as his feet hit the ground, but Harry steadied him while letting go of the Portkey. Once he had his feet under him, Euan looked around and saw where he was: the kitchen of his home.

Tears formed in Euan’s eyes as he remembered the last time he had seen his parents and younger sister alive and healthy, the images placing their worried faces where they had been in the kitchen. Still, he allowed those images to come forth so that he could finally deal with them before older, happier memories took over.

Euan remembered baking biscuits with his Mum and Liz in here. He recalled trying to pull his Dad away from the newspaper at the island in the middle of the room so that they could play football. He remembered reading his Hogwarts acceptance letter over and over after Professor McGonagall left the house, promising to return the next day with a few other families to take them to Diagon Alley for the first time. Memory upon memory of fun times with his family came to his mind, making him smile slightly through his tears.

It wasn’t until he allowed the memories to stop coming that he realized Harry had an arm over his shoulders and was rubbing his arm. Harry hadn’t said a word since they arrived, allowing Euan to do this at his own pace, and Euan was grateful.

Walking over to the refrigerator, Euan pulled off the pictures and drawings on it, some of the drawings done by him and the rest Liz. The pictures were mainly of him and Liz with one of the four of them together. All of them went into the pouch on his belt that Harry had given him just for this, telling Euan that smaller things would go there while larger ones would go into the messenger bag that was slung across his torso.

Taking a deep breath, Euan went from the kitchen to the living room, where flashes of the battle flew into his mind. One moment he was seeing Yaxley sprawled on the stairs after being hit by his magic, the next he blinked and saw the other Death Eater tied up and bleeding from all the cuts he had given the man, and the moment after that he was seeing a clean and completely whole living room.

More memories of his family came forward, but Euan just allowed them to flow before stepping forward to take the more numerous pictures from the walls, tables, and mantle. He wasn’t crying this time, his tears dried on his cheeks. Otherwise, Euan only took the quilt that was neatly folded over the back of the couch. His grandmother had made it for his mother when she got married, and he wasn’t going to leave it behind.

As he led the silent Harry upstairs, Euan remembered his mother’s screams and decided that he would go into his parents’ bedroom last of them all. He walked past it quickly, moving to his bedroom.

While he had a quick flashback to seeing the Death Eaters from his window and went to go look out of it to see a sunny street below, though it was devoid of life at the moment, Euan didn’t have much else in this room. He could remember his Mum folding and putting his laundry away and Liz coming in here to try to steal a toy from him and his Dad reading him a bedtime story, but the memories of them weren’t as overwhelming here.

Euan went to his closet and dresser to find the rest of his clothes, putting them into the messenger bag. He then found all of the novels on his bookshelf that he wanted as well as some books from when he was very young to take along. Many of his toys joined the bag along with the small blanket that his mother had made for him while she was still pregnant with him. The one his grandmother had made for him had gone into the bag almost the instant he entered the room. All of the pictures in his room he put in the small pouch. Otherwise, he just took the small things like colored pencils and a poster that caught his fancy from his room, knowing he would want them at Marauder Manor, even if he didn’t need them at Hogwarts.

Finally done packing up his room, Euan turned off the light and went down the hall to Liz’s room, taking a deep breath before entering it and flipping the light switch. Memories hit him so hard that he physically flinched, moving back into Harry, who held him tightly as he fought the onslaught of images.

He was unable to stop the tears that flowed down his face as he remembered little Elizabeth in her pink bedroom with her dolls and other toys. She had forced him to play dress-up so often that he had finally told her that he had other things to do, making her cry until he hugged her and said sorry and agreed to dress-up once again, despite hating the game. Her sweet, soft voice sang songs in his head as he remembered her and Mum singing together in here.

Taking deep breaths, Euan finally calmed himself enough to walk into Liz’s room properly. He slowly went around the room and picked up pictures, her favorite doll, a few of her favorite clothes, her blankets from their mother and grandmother, her favorite non-doll toys… Euan grabbed anything that would remind him of her, knowing that she would never brighten his day again, never annoy him by asking him to play with her, never run to him and make him bend down so that he could lift her up, never ask him for a piggyback ride…

Still, he knew that doing this was helping him come to terms with the idea. Liz would always be in his heart, and he would never forget her, always looking at her picture on her birthday and July 30th. This might hurt more than he had hurt since that night, but sometimes it took hurting more for the pain to begin to go away.

Closing his eyes against the tears still resting there even though they had stopped falling, Euan took a deep breath, taking in the smell of his sister, before turning off the light and leaving this room as well. There was only one room left, and it would probably be the most painful of them all, but also the most the most cleansing.

He froze in front of the one room he knew would be the worst to enter: his parents’. Still, he had to do this now, or he’d never get it over with.

With Harry’s hand on his shoulder for support, Euan pushed open the door and slowly moved his hand to turn on the light. He didn’t even have to enter the room to have memories hit him hard, his tears beginning to fall again.

In his mind, blood coated the floor as his dad and sister lay on the floor, both bleeding from various places. The Death Eater was on the wall, trapped with his wand smashed and his face cut up by Euan’s own dagger. His mother was on the bed where the Death Eater had left her, her eyes open with fear and pain on her face even though her hazel eyes were blank.

Suddenly, he blinked and saw a completely clean room without any bodies. His parents’ stuff was exactly where it had been a month ago, looking as if a Death Eater hadn’t even been in here. It was like his parents were just at work and would be returning any time now to change their clothes before joining him and Liz downstairs to watch some telly.

First Euan took one step into the room, then another and another until he reached the bed. He slowly turned in a circle, taking in the room and Harry standing in the doorway, just watching him. This room gave him no other memories except those of the night of the attack despite Euan knowing he had memories of coming into this room at night after a nightmare to sleep in his parents’ bed, all of them overshadowed by the horror that he now saw in this room.

Still, Euan began to slowly find pictures, blankets, clothes, and other personal items belonging to his parents, especially his mother’s jewelry, his father’s watch and chain necklace from Euan’s grandfather, and both of their wedding rings, all of which had been left on their shared dresser for him by the Aurors.

Finally, he stopped the terrible memories of the night and turned to Harry with tears still streaming down his face. Euan knew that coming back had helped, though it would take a while for him to get even close to where he had been before the attack.

Harry took his hand after Euan turned off the light and closed the door on his parents’ room, leading him back down to the kitchen before pulling out the return Portkey. Before taking it, Euan knew he had to say one thing to Harry. Through his closed up throat with a choked voice that showed his pain, grief, and tears, he whispered, “Thank you.”

Then Euan left his home, knowing he would only return once more to retrieve everything in it before selling it. He could never live here again, not with all the ghosts.


	10. Chapter Ten

 

Harry shrunk down his trunk and slipped it into a pocket, gave his room one more look-over, and left to go down to the living room. As he passed the third floor, he saw that almost every door in the hallway was open, the voices of many of his friends whispers in the air as they spoke and finished the last bits of packing they had to do.

In just half an hour, the majority of the residents of Marauder Manor would be taking a Portkey to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters to catch the Hogwarts Express. Last minute checks were being performed, trunks were being put into pockets, and everyone was headed to the living room to say goodbye to Samuel and Amelia, who would be headed to work shortly.  
  
“How are you doing?” Harry asked Euan as he settled down onto the couch next to the twelve-year-old. Yesterday had been quite the day for him, Harry knew, so he wanted to be sure his friend could handle returning to the castle just fine.  
  
“I’ll survive,” Euan replied, his head rising so that Harry could see his hazel eyes, darker than exactly a year ago but lighter than the night of the attack.  
  
Harry nodded in agreement as he sat back to wait for everyone else to get downstairs before leaving for the train.

…

“ _Why_ do we have to go to those things?” Harry moaned as he collapsed into his seat after the Prefect meeting. Around him, Terry, Padma, Daphne, Susan, Justin, Ginny, Maya, Neville, and Hermione found their own seats, all but Hermione, Padma, and Terry sighing in relief.  
  
“Harry, you know that the Prefect meetings are important for us as Prefects!” Hermione reprimanded, but Harry just rolled his eyes in exasperation.  
  
“Hermione, they’re dead _boring_ ,” he informed her. “If the Head Boy and Girl could just make the way the information is given out more interesting and do it faster, I might not complain so much. As it is, the meetings take _forever_ and it’s all just listed facts.”  
  
“Then you’d better do a better job next year,” Daphne stated blandly as the other Prefects besides Hermione nodded in agreement, making Harry blink before his eyes widened.  
  
“Yes, Harry, next year _you_ will be Head Boy without a doubt, so you’d best start figuring out how you’ll run the meetings soon,” Blaise said with a snicker. “Oh, and you’d best convince Hermione to let _you_ run the meetings rather than her, because it appears she doesn’t like your thoughts on the meetings.”  
  
Harry shot Blaise a glare to make him shut up even as he knew that his friend was correct about Hermione. The look on her face was one of disbelief and hurt, as if his words about how the Prefects’ meeting was held were a personal insult even though she wasn’t running it. Truthfully, Harry already had _plenty_ of ideas for how to make just the September 1st meeting more interesting, mainly by involving the Prefects rather than lecturing to them, but he knew he would have to convince Hermione of his ideas before it could happen. To the entire school, his year especially, it was obvious the pair of them would be Head Boy and Girl next year, so he didn’t even bother denying it anymore.  
  
Harry was startled out of his thoughts by Ginny moving to sit in his lap suddenly. They hadn’t really had a chance to talk yet as Ginny had only reached the train at the last minute, and the Prefect meeting started just after the train left the station.  
  
“How were your last two weeks with Dumbledore and his bird group?” Harry asked her, and around him, there were snickers at his name for the Order.  
  
“Annoying like nothing else,” she sighed. “Mum had a complete fit for more reasons than I care to admit after the trip to Diagon Alley. One of the main reasons was because Dumbledore placed a spell on both Ron and me to know where we were at all times, so they knew we went somewhere that his spell couldn’t follow us. Ron and I _told_ Mum that we had just gone to Susan’s house, but we were still grounded for the last two weeks of the summer, which is why we couldn’t get on our Journals. We were being watched at all hours by magic.”  
  
“Bloody Hell,” Blaise muttered, and Harry noticed that Daphne didn’t even hit him for his language as everyone stared at Ginny in disbelief.  
  
“The Headmaster is truly trying to turn us against him, isn’t he?” Draco muttered darkly, but in the silence of the compartment, everyone heard him easily.  
  
“I don’t think he realizes what’s truly going on in this war,” Hannah commented in reply to that. Everyone turned to look at her even as Harry had to admit to himself that she had the correct idea with that thought. “It feels like he only sees Voldemort and the Order with the Ministry as something helping him but also able to assist Voldemort at the same time, even with Amelia as Minister. He can’t seem to understand that Amelia, Samuel, and the rest are actually a third side not working with him but still against Voldemort, using the Ministry to their advantage.”  
  
“And because of this, he’s going to be completely out of touch with the war, feeling as if he’s in charge of the fight against Voldemort when it’s really us and the adults,” Neville stated.  
  
Everyone was silent as these thoughts sank in. Harry knew that his friends were completely and utterly correct, especially concerning Dumbledore’s inability to see the truth in front of him. Unfortunately, he also knew that they would need Dumbledore to agree to stop working against Amelia and the Ministry, possibly even giving them information that they didn’t have. That meant working with him as best they could while trying to get around his manipulations.  
  
“On that happy note, why don’t we figure out something else to talk about?” Theo suggested with a grin. Harry shared a mischievous grin with Tracey and Ginny before deciding to be evil to take everyone’s minds off Dumbledore.  
  
“Like how Blaise and Daphne are dating?” he asked slyly, knowing that at least Terry and Padma hadn’t known about that. Plus, it was perfect payback for all their teasing of him and Ginny.  
  
“Ugh, don’t remind me!” Astoria moaned, her eyes scrunched up tightly and her hands on her ears. “I’m _still_ trying to get that image out of my mind!”  
  
Everyone, except for Daphne and Blaise, laughed in some form at the younger Greengrass sister as she shuddered at the memory. The former was blushing slightly and at least looked sorry for her sister while the latter was glaring at Harry, who smiled innocently at him in return.  
  
“When and how did this finally happen?” Padma asked with interest, channeling her twin as she did every once in a while if a topic interested her enough. This topic was certainly one that would catch her interest, seeing as everyone had been waiting for it for ages.  
  
Harry and Tracey burst out laughing at those words, and most of the compartment smirked even as Daphne and Blaise glared at the pair. “Oh, I think I see,” Padma said with a grin while Ginny nodded at the Ravenclaw. Ginny then went on to inform everyone in the compartment how it had happened, since not even those at Marauder Manor knew most of the details beyond Harry and Tracey pushing the couple into it. By the time the story had been told, everyone, even Daphne and Blaise, was in hysterics at what he and Tracey had done.  
  
Only Brandon Harper, Maya’s fellow Slytherin fifth year Prefect, entering the compartment to retrieve Maya for their patrol and to remind the other Prefects that they had patrol shortly calmed down the laughter. “Don’t do anything exciting without me!” Maya told the group as she followed Brandon from the compartment, making the Slytherins, Natalie, Euan, and Ginny grin mischievously at the challenge. “Seriously, I want to be part of it!”  
  
Harry snorted as the door closed behind her before he relaxed again, his arms around Ginny’s waist as she was still on his lap. “We’ve really turned so many of you into pranksters, haven’t we?” he asked the compartment at large, gesturing to himself, Ginny, and Tracey beside them.  
  
“Pretty much,” Natalie, Graham, and Euan said together with matching grins. They all traded surprised looks before quickly grouping together to discuss something.  
  
“ _And there’s the pranking trio that will follow us once I’ve finally left Hogwarts,_ ” Ginny hissed in Parseltongue in his ear as they both watched the group.  
  
“ _Yup, and they’ve got the same look as us except the Houses are slightly off,_ ” he replied, talking about how Euan was a year younger than Natalie and Graham.  
  
“ _Hey, we’ve proven it works quite well,_ ” Ginny reminded him, and Harry lifted one side of his mouth in amusement.  
  
“ _I never said it didn’t work well,_ ” Harry informed her. “ _Besides, as long as there’s someone with a Slytherin mind in the group, you’ll be able to do quite a bit._ ” Harry saw Ginny about to open her mouth to deny that one, so he beat her to it. “ _You and I both know that your brothers could have been in Slytherin with the way they think, and as much as he denies it, Sirius’s upbringing gave him plenty of Slytherin traits when he lets them show. That and Remus is quite the Slytherin when he isn’t being Hermione._ ”  
  
Ginny snorted but had to nod in agreement. “ _And all pranksters have some Slytherin in them,_ ” Ankh hissed from his place in his special holster on Harry’s right shoulder, making him and Ginny blink before Harry remembered that he was there. He had gotten so used to the weight of his snake on his shoulder that he often forgot he was there. Still, Ankh was a lot of help during prank wars and as a lookout when he needed one.  
  
“ _Quite right, Ankh; thank you for proving my point,_ ” Harry said with a grin in Ginny’s direction. She rolled her eyes but nodded to show that he had won that round.  
  
“Ginny?” a voice asked, and Harry looked up to see Colin Creevey in the doorway to their compartment. “We’ve got patrol right now before the sixth years start their rounds…”  
  
“Right,” she said, getting up from Harry’s lap. “I’ll see you after both of us have done our rounds, Harry.”  
  
“See you in an hour,” Harry replied as she left the compartment before sighing slightly. “Ugh, _now_ what am I supposed to do until patrol?”  
  
“Read?” Tracey suggested with an amused grin. He raised an eyebrow, and she handed him a book from her pocket after returning it to its normal size. _Writing Laws For the Wizengamot._  
  
“ _Tracey,_ ” Harry groaned, throwing the book back at her so hard that she winced as it hit her lap. “Sorry,” he apologized, “but you _know_ I’m sick of that book already!”  
  
“What book?” Draco asked, and Harry just pointed in her direction, allowing Tracey to hold it up with a mischievous grin as Theo, Neville, and Draco all groaned while covering their eyes and turning away from it. “Not _that_ book again!” Draco moaned, the others muttering the same thing.  
  
“You are an evil girlfriend, you know that?” Theo asked as he took the book from her, shrunk it, put it into his pocket, and pulled her towards him.  
  
“I believe I’ve been told that before,” Tracey said innocently, and Harry just rolled his eyes before reaching into a pouch on his belt to pull out one of the rarer books on potion ingredients from the library at Marauder Manor. He hadn’t had a chance to look at it yet, and he had at least a half hour to do so now… might as well take advantage of it.

…

“Hey, Harry!” a voice called from the compartment to his right as he and Daphne walked around for their patrol, having already broken up at least three fights just by showing up and having told some of the younger years not to practice on their friends without an older student in the compartment more than five times.  
  
He turned at the familiar voice of Rose Zeller, Hufflepuff’s second year leader, to see that she had opened the door to her compartment where she and the rest of the Hufflepuffs in her year were all looking at him.  
  
“Yes, Rose?” he asked curiously, Daphne stopping beside him.  
  
“We had a few questions about the HPs…” Rose began slowly, looking back at her friends, who nodded at her encouragingly. “I know that some of the other years have been talking about it as well.” Harry looked the group over thoughtfully before making a decision.  
  
“Tell the other leaders to meet in my compartment in…” Harry paused, turning to Daphne as he tried to figure out when he and his friends would be done with their patrols of the train until the second half of the ride.  
  
“Two hours?” Daphne suggested, and Harry nodded in agreement, turning to face the group again.  
  
“Two hours, and we’ll talk about anything you’re curious about then, okay?” Rose and the other Hufflepuffs nodded. “Now, Daphne and I had better get back to our patrol before Carmichael or Williams catches us just standing here talking and decides to get us in trouble with McGonagall or some teacher for not doing our jobs,” Harry said, referring to the Head Boy and Girl, who would do just that, even if it _was_ Harry.  
  
“See you later, then, Harry,” Rose said as the other second years called their goodbyes from behind her.  
  
“That’s going to be an interesting conversation,” Daphne commented a bit sarcastically as they continued down the train.  
  
“Oh, shut it,” Harry groaned, knowing that he now had to figure out what he was going to tell the various leaders at the meeting in two hours.

…

Harry was trying not to groan as he looked at the large number of leaders in front of him. His closest friends who weren’t leaders had agreed to leave the compartment for a bit to make room as long as someone left a Journal open so that they could follow the conversation. Maya had taken care of that.  
  
“So, you all have questions for me, I’ve been told,” Harry began. “Why don’t you all choose someone to ask one or two, and we’ll go from there?” The leaders all began talking amongst themselves except for those who had been at Marauder Manor with him. They all knew what his plans for the HPs were, so they didn’t need to ask.  
  
“Can you give us a basic idea of what you plan to do with the HPs this year?” Bradley Martin, Ravenclaw fifth year, asked as they all suddenly turned to face him again.  
  
“First and foremost, we’re going to test you all to see how well you’re still doing,” Harry replied instantly, having anticipated this question. “Many of you, especially those who are Muggle-born or those who just couldn’t practice much during the summer, will probably be moved around. In fact, we’re all expecting to have groups made up of people from various years mixed together rather than by years this time around because of the break.  
  
“Once we have the groups, we’re going to review for a few sessions, get everyone back into shape again, before moving on. Other than that, the plan is really just to teach as much as we can until other ideas come to us.”  
  
“What does that mean?” Laura Madley, third year Hufflepuff, asked in surprise.  
  
“It means we don’t really have a plan of what to teach,” Natalie informed her friend as they were in the same year.  
  
“We’ve got the spells and non-Magical fighting we want to teach you already decided on, but how we teach it and when isn’t really planned until just before each session,” Susan told her Housemate.  
  
“Last year, most of those lessons were made up right before you got there or on the spot,” Astoria added in helpfully with a grin as she obviously tried not to laugh at their shocked faces. Harry knew that they were all trying not to laugh.  
  
“You lot taught us all that almost on the spot?” Tom Vaisey of Slytherin demanded, the only Slytherin leader not among Harry’s closest friends.  
  
“Pretty much,” was the general consensus among the friends as they all shared looks and nods. “Merlin,” was what most of those in front of Harry muttered in response to that, many shaking their heads in disbelief.  
  
“Anything else you wanted to know?” Harry asked cheerfully, snapping them out of their thoughts.  
  
“I was wondering if we were going to go on with the various tournaments like we did during the Triwizard Tournament,” Demelza Robins, the Gryffindor who had originally suggested them, mentioned.  
  
“We were actually hoping we’d be able to convince the Quidditch teams into doing another Unofficial Tournament so that we could have some extra games,” Harry said with a grin as he looked at Graham. “Draco was planning on bringing it up with the other captains sometime this week when he found them. As for the other tournaments, you just need to put up signs in The Den and let them happen.”  
  
“Great!” Demelza said as many of the other leaders began discussing it amongst themselves.  
  
“Anything else?” Harry asked as the whispering calmed down some.  
  
“Not really, no,” Kyle Summerby of Hufflepuff finally said after they talked for a few moments. “If we have anything else to ask, we’ll just stop you the next time you pass by us while on rounds.”  
  
Harry groaned quietly with a smile on his face, letting them know he wasn’t really upset. “Well then, I’ll just have to hope you have nothing more to ask until after we get to Hogwarts. I’ll see you lot later.”  
  
Everyone smiled and began to leave the compartment. When the others rejoined them, Daphne was leading a little girl with black hair and hazel eyes, who looked nervous but also curious.  
  
“She was looking for you, Terry,” Daphne explained as Harry looked at her curiously. Terry looked up and smiled at the girl, holding his arms open a bit to let her know that it was fine.  
  
“Who’s this, Terry?” Ginny asked as the little girl ran over to him and hugged him tightly.  
  
“Everyone, this is Danielle, my younger cousin and the oldest of her siblings,” he said as an introduction. “Danielle, I’ve shown you pictures of my friends, so you should know them all by now.” She nodded while looking around at the group shyly, but with a small, hesitant smile on her face. “I’m sorry I didn’t get the chance to introduce you earlier, but my aunt and uncle got here just before the train left, I think, so I couldn’t find her until my patrol. I told her to come find me in a few hours.”  
  
“Hi Danielle, I’m Harry,” Harry said as he moved from his seat to kneel in front of her, holding out a hand for her to shake. She did so slowly, her smile growing as she did.  
  
“Terry told me about you,” she said softly, and Harry smiled at her.  
  
“Did he?” he asked, and she nodded. “I hope it wasn’t all bad.” Danielle giggled while shaking her head. “Oh, phew, that’s a good thing!” She laughed at that.  
  
“He told me that you’re one of his best friends and really nice even though you’re a Slytherin,” she said, loud enough for the whole group to hear. “Terry also said you don’t like being the Boy-Who-Lived at all.”  
  
“Well, he’s certainly right about that,” Tracey said as she moved to kneel next to Harry. “I’m Tracey, Danielle, and this is Ginny, Harry’s girlfriend.” Harry turned enough to see Ginny beside Tracey. Danielle smiled at them both.  
  
“Why don’t you come sit over here with us and tell us what House you think you’ll be in and what you want to learn most at Hogwarts?” Ginny suggested, gesturing to where they had been sitting. The compartment had rearranged itself as Harry had spoken to Danielle, making it so that the girls were all closer to the window and the boys the door.  
  
“Okay,” Danielle agreed, getting out of Terry’s lap to join them. “I want to be in Ravenclaw,” she said as she sat down, and Harry took a seat next to Terry to watch the girls help Danielle relax.  
  
“So, any other family we should know about?” he asked Terry without turning to look at him.  
  
“I was planning on introducing you to my cousins and siblings this summer, but my family got really cautious with the news of Voldemort,” Terry tried to say in apology, but Harry raised a hand and shook his head.  
  
“I don’t mind, Terry, I’m just curious,” Harry told him, turning to face his friend. “We all know that we train more than play most of the time, so bringing them over wouldn’t have been the best idea. I’m mostly asking so I won’t be surprised next year.” He smirked as he said that, and Terry relaxed with a grin.  
  
“I’ve got three younger siblings, and Danielle has another four,” he said. “Next year my brother Michael and sister Tammy are coming to Hogwarts; they’re twins. The rest of my family will be coming after we leave.” Harry nodded in understanding. “The twins will probably be in different Houses because they’re quite different, though not as different as Padma and Parvati.”  
  
“That’ll be interesting,” Harry said, thinking about how different the Patil sisters really were.  
  
“It certainly will,” Terry agreed as he watched his cousin and the girls with a small smile on his face.

…

Harry was trying not to mutter darkly under his breath as Mr. Filch, the school caretaker, poked at him with a Security Probe to look for Dark objects. He took extra care going over Harry’s pouches, but as Harry knew, there was nothing Dark in them. Still, he could think of many ways that were a lot more effective than _that_ to make sure nothing Dark entered the school, and Dumbledore probably knew them all and was purposely not using them. It was frustrating, but Harry kept quiet while waiting for his friends to pass by Mr. Filch.  
  
“That was _so_ annoying,” Daphne commented as they walked into the Great Hall, everyone breaking up into their Houses to sit at the proper tables for the feast. Tomorrow they would be able to sit anywhere at smaller tables, but feasts always had the House tables out.  
  
“There are so many better ways than that probe to sense Dark objects,” Draco said as he rolled his eyes. “Anyone willing to bet that Dumbledore just didn’t feel like putting those sorts of protections up?”  
  
“Not really, since that’s exactly what I was thinking,” Harry replied with a sigh. “He probably feels the probe will be better than wards or charms of some sort.”  
  
“Unless he has both,” Maya reminded them. “I mean, he could just have Filch using the probe for extra security in case someone knows a way around the spells.”  
  
“True…” Harry and Draco muttered together. “But it’s still annoying,” Harry finished alone, and no one would disagree with him there.  
  
After that the conversation mainly turned to more normal things such as who they thought had accepted the Defense position this year, who that walrus-looking professor was — Harry was keeping quiet about that as he knew the man was Horace Slughorn, having seen the memory Daniel and Samuel had collected at least two years ago — how hard or easy NEWT classes might be after their extra training, and what the schedule might look like. The Great Hall was slowly filling up as students passed by Filch and his stupid probe.  
  
Finally, everyone was seated, Hagrid had just slipped into his seat at the Head Table, and Professor McGonagall was now leading the first years into the Great Hall towards where the Sorting Hat sat waiting. Harry turned to listen carefully, knowing that he would not only be getting yet another message but also would be writing down the song when he got the chance.  
  
“ _The fight is continuing,  
Coming is the darkness;  
War is not pretty,  
Nor is it harmless.  
You all shall have to fight,  
Though probably not this year,  
So keep on preparing,  
To be ready when the fight is near.  
Take care where you step,  
And also what you say,  
For you never know what can happen  
In both the light and dark of day.  
Our Houses are united  
After last year’s bridge was formed;  
Keep them together,  
For we cannot allow them to become deformed.  
As for you, Chosen Heir,  
Your path is to continue what you began,  
And to keep hidden and train,  
So that soon you may do what you can.  
Finally we come to the Houses,  
Which are four in number,  
And they will welcome you all,  
To keep them from slumber.  
The brave, fearless Gryffindor  
Takes those like him,  
Who will fight no matter what,  
Even if the outcome may be grim;  
The brilliant Ravenclaw  
Accepts those who use their brain  
For studying and researching,  
Trying to gain;  
Hufflepuff, the dear woman,  
Welcomes all to her home,  
Especially the hard-working,  
Who try not to groan;  
And finally there is Slytherin,  
The slyest and observant one of the lot,  
For he knew how to be ambitious  
And had many a plot.  
So put me on;  
I don’t bite,  
For I put you in the House  
That will make your futures bright._ ”  
  
As everyone cheered for the Hat and it took a bow towards each House’s table, Harry understood that he was to keep his status as the Chosen Heir quiet for yet another year. The Hat also seemed to approve of how united the school had become last year and wanted them to continue. It actually had a point when it mentioned that the connections between the Houses couldn’t be allowed to fall apart, because that would make the war that much harder to fight, especially if they were training to work together to protect Hogwarts.  
  
Then the Sorting commenced. Harry clapped as each new Slytherin was Sorted, and he also joined in with the Ravenclaws after Danielle Boot was Sorted there. The Sorting went pretty quickly with how few new students there were; the war was affecting the number as parents kept their children home, just as the first war had made Harry’s year smaller than most as many children were killed during it.  
  
“I won’t keep you from your meals,” Professor Dumbledore told the Hall as he stood, “so I will save my speech for the end. Dig in.”  
  
As the Headmaster sat down, food appeared on the platters as it did every year. Harry filled his plate and began to eat as the food cart on the train was never truly filling. There was little talking in the beginning as most people ate, but then the volume of voices began to rise as friends talked around their food or finished.  
  
“So… _Does_ anyone know who that man is up there?” Draco asked, and Harry blinked before realizing who he meant. He had almost forgotten that no one had had a chance to answer that question before the first years arrived.  
  
“Well, yes, I believe a few of us do,” Harry said, rolling his eyes as everyone turned to look at him. “Trace, Daphne, Astoria, please tell me you haven’t _already_ forgotten who that is? Picture him with hair and less weight, and think about Voldemort’s lovely trophies.”  
  
“ _Oh_!” Astoria said, hitting her forehead even as Daphne and Tracey suddenly realized who he was. “I knew he looked familiar, but I didn’t realize he was _that_ man.”  
  
“Who is he?” Theo asked impatiently, and Harry saw that everyone else was looking at them expectantly.  
  
“Our new professor,” Harry said blandly, making them all groan at him. “Fine, his name is Horace Slughorn, and he taught Potions when Tom Riddle was a student here.” Everyone blinked in surprise as they turned to look up at the man again, everyone used to hearing Voldemort’s birth name used interchangeably with his feared one.  
  
“Wait, Potions?” Blaise asked, turning his head to face Harry again sharply. Harry nodded as he began to realize what Blaise meant. “If he taught Potions, doesn’t that mean he’d return to the position?”  
  
“Maybe…” Daphne said slowly. “I mean, it’s possible he could be teaching another subject because we all know that some people have multiple strengths when it comes to magic.”  
  
“But the most likely position for him is Potions, right?” Draco asked, and Harry had to nod. Draco then asked the question on all of their minds: “Does that mean…?”  
  
“It looks like we’re about to find out,” Tracey said, gesturing in the direction of the Head Table. Professor Dumbledore had just stood up and was waiting for silence.  
  
“Now, as everybody in his Hall knows, Lord Voldemort and his followers are once more at large and gaining in strength,” Professor Dumbledore said, and Harry had to fight the urge to roll his eyes at how the Headmaster was just stating the obvious. _Everyone_ knew that they were back, so why bother reminding them all?  
  
“I cannot emphasize strongly enough how dangerous the present situation is, and how much care each of us at Hogwarts must take to ensure that we remain safe.” Harry felt that the Headmaster had just backed his claim that the Hogwarts Protectors were important, seeing as it was the students taking the safety of Hogwarts into their own hands.  
  
“The castle’s magical fortifications have been strengthened over the summer,” he continued.  
  
“At least there’s that,” Harry heard Draco mutter quietly.  
  
“We are protected in new and more powerful ways, but we must still guard against carelessness on the part of any student or member of staff. I urge you, therefore, to abide by any security restrictions that your teachers might impose on you, however irksome you might find them — in particular, the rule that you are not to be out after hours. I implore you, should you notice anything strange or suspicious within or outside the castle, to report it to a member of staff immediately. I trust you to conduct yourselves, always, with the utmost regard for your own and others’ safety.”  
  
Harry had a feeling the students would tell _him_ of suspicious things they noted before even finding a professor. In a way, he felt as if _he_ was in charge of the students, even with the professors, Head Boy, and Head Girl there, just because he was the leader of leaders. Still, that wasn’t a bad thing as he was willing to tell people things beyond what he thought they should know to be sure that others knew what he did.  
  
“On a lighter note, we are pleased to welcome a new member of staff this year, Professor Slughorn,” Professor Dumbledore continued after a few moments of silence. “He is a former professor who has agreed to return to his old post as the Potions Master of the school.”  
  
“Potions?” was heard around the Hall by most, but Harry and his friends all shared looks. It seemed they were correct, and they couldn’t help but smile up at their Head of House, who always helped and protected his snakes when they needed it. He caught their looks and nodded in their direction. Harry swore he saw Professor Snape’s lips twitching slightly, as if fighting off a smile.  
  
“Professor Snape, meanwhile,” Professor Dumbledore continued over the voices of those talking, quieting them almost completely, “will now be taking over as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.”  
  
The Slytherins all began to applaud their Head of House while the Ravenclaws accepted it easily, the Hufflepuffs looked hesitant but accepting, and the Gryffindors were shocked but not totally against it. It seemed Professor Snape’s change of attitude toward the other Houses made it easier to accept him, but they still didn’t trust him or truly like him except for those who had never known him as anything other than a somewhat biased but still fair enough professor.  
  
Professor Snape waved off the applause, but Harry could tell he was pleased by his snakes’ approval of his new post.  
  
“Now, the usual announcement that there is a list in Mr. Filch’s office with the banned objects, which now include a blanket ban on all products from Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. Also, for the new students and the few who need to be reminded, the Forbidden Forest is just that: Forbidden. I believe that is all for tonight, so off to bed. Get a good night’s sleep as classes start tomorrow.”  
  
Most were a bit shocked by the sudden dismissal, but then everyone began to stand. Maya and Brandon called for the first year Slytherins, and he and Daphne left to go stand by the entrance to the dungeons while the seventh year Prefects went to wait in the Common Room, just in case the other years needed them.  
  
Harry was planning on going to his dorm, writing down the Sorting Hat’s song, unpacking a bit with magic, and going to bed. He would need his rest for the first day of classes.

 


	11. Chapter Eleven

Harry was still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he served himself some porridge the next morning after leading a few of the early riser first years to the Great Hall. Tracey and Theo were with him while he knew Daphne was waiting for a few more of the first years, Draco, and Blaise before joining them.

“Why is it that it’s harder to wake up at this time at Hogwarts compared to the Manor?” Harry asked aloud, and Theo shrugged while Tracey swallowed her bite of toast.

“It’s probably because we know we have classes to go to today,” she replied, and Harry sighed in agreement. “We’ll get used to it again soon.”

“Unfortunately,” Theo muttered, and Harry snorted in agreement to that statement.

“Mr. Potter, Mr. Nott, Ms. Davis, you’re all up early,” the voice of Professor Snape said softly from behind Harry and Tracey. Theo looked up at him from his place on the other side of the table. Harry turned to look up at the man.

“Yes, sir,” Harry replied with a small nod.

“Do the three of you know which classes you wish to take?” he asked, and Harry blinked before nodding, knowing that Tracey and Theo were also agreeing. “Then let us take advantage of this and get you your time tables. Ms. Davis, what do you plan on taking?”

“Defense, Charms, Transfiguration, Ancient Runes, and Arithmancy,” she said quickly, and Harry knew their professor would be surprised by the last choice.

“Arithmancy?” Professor Snape asked softly. “You did not take the class before, but I see you have the required OWL with an ‘E,’ so you should be fine in the class. May I ask why you’re only taking it now, at NEWT level?”

“I plan on doing something with Charms after Hogwarts, so I’ll need Arithmancy,” Tracey explained, “as you most likely remember from our meeting.” Professor Snape nodded. “Before, I didn’t have the room for the extra elective, but now I’ll only have five classes.”

“Very well,” Professor Snape said, taping his wand on her schedule and handing it to her. “Mr. Nott?”

“Defense, Transfiguration, Charms, Arithmancy, and Herbology,” Theo said immediately. Professor Snape nodded and tapped his schedule as well, no reason to question Theo this time around.

“Ancient Runes, Potions, Transfiguration, Defense, Charms, and Care of Magical Creatures,” Harry said without being asked. Professor Snape raised an eyebrow momentarily before tapping Harry’s schedule and handing it to him.

“Very well,” Professor Snape said. “I shall see you all later this morning.”

With that, Professor Snape went up to the Head Table for breakfast. Harry looked down to see that they had Defense as the second class this morning, which would explain the professor’s words. He saw Tracey looking over his shoulder at his schedule, and turned it so that she could see it easier.

“Well, you’ll have to tell Theo and me how Professor Slughorn is after classes today,” she said, gesturing to the Potions he had after Care of Magical Creatures that afternoon.

“And how many others take Care of Magical Creatures this year,” Theo added with a grin before eating a slice of bacon.

“Sure,” Harry said as he rolled his eyes before going back to his breakfast.

…

“Ugh,” Tracey groaned as she, Harry, Draco, and Daphne met up with Blaise and Theo after Ancient Runes. “Too much homework.” Harry couldn’t help but agree as he thought about the essay, translations, and reading they had to do by Wednesday. NEWT classes were going to be a pain in the arse.

“Let’s just hope Professor Snape is kinder,” Draco muttered as Theo and Blaise laughed until Tracey and Daphne glared at them, shutting them up in an instant.

“This is our Head of House you’re talking about; you know that, right?” Harry said with a raised eyebrow, making Draco groan. “As long as he teaches well, I won’t complain too much.”

They continued to Defense class in silence. Harry thought it would be a good class with Professor Snape teaching it, given his background, but they would have to wait and see.

“Enter,” Professor Snape said just as they reached the classroom, the door opening before them. The Slytherins all nodded in his direction, and he returned it.

It didn’t take long for the rest of the class to arrive. The six of them were the only Slytherins in the class, but most of the rest of their year had made it into the NEWT class, most likely thanks to the HP training. Their classroom was a lot larger than usual, most likely due to the class size as NEWT classes tended to be all four Houses together. Then again, Harry had a feeling Professor Snape had another motive behind the size of the room, knowing the man.

“You have had five teachers in this subject so far,” Professor Snape said once everyone was silent, watching him with their fullest attention. Harry knew this was the one class they all realized they needed to do well in, even if many did not like the professor. “Naturally, these teachers will all have had their own methods and priorities. Given this confusion, I am surprised so many of you received an OWL in this subject, let alone ones so high.” There was some muttering from the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, though most in the room besides Harry and his fellow Slytherins seemed surprised that Professor Snape had actually complimented them.

“I have seen the scores and who received them,” Professor Snape continued, cutting off all voices, “and it makes me wonder if some of you did not teach the others to be sure you all passed this exam.” Harry saw his Head of House looking at him and the other Slytherins specifically before his eyes glided over to Neville, Susan, Hannah, Padma, Terry, Justin, and Hermione. It appeared the man had caught onto who he was with the most and closest to in the school; perhaps he even understood how the social ladder of the Journals worked, even if he didn’t know about them.

“Enough about your OWLs,” Professor Snape suddenly said sharply. “We are here to discuss the Dark Arts. The Dark Arks are many, varied, ever-changing, and eternal. Fighting them is like fighting a many-headed monster, which, each time a neck is severed, sprouts a head even fiercer and cleverer than before. You are fighting that which is unfixed, mutating, indestructible.

“Your defenses must therefore be as flexible and inventive as the arts you seek to undo.” Harry was impressed by the speech his professor had given. Yes, it was a bit impassioned when he was speaking about the Dark Arts, but it also was an excellent way to try to make the class realize how hard it is to fight the Dark Arts. In fact, the speech reminded Harry of the suggestions he gave the Hogwarts Protectors about their fighting styles: _Don’t stick to just one style, but be able to change it up, because you’ll never know what you’re up against._

Professor Snape then explained the pictures on his walls of victims of different sorts of Dark magic: the Cruciatus Curse, a Dementor’s Kiss, and an Inferius attack. The latter was corpses that had been enchanted to do the enchanter’s bidding; a very Dark Art that was part of necromancy.

“Now, you are, I believe, novices in nonverbal spells,” Professor Snape continued, and Harry knew that he and his closest friends were fighting back smirks as they now got to prove their professor wrong at that as well as the HPs of this year, who had practiced nonverbal castings of certain spells last year near the end of term. “What is the advantage of a nonverbal spell?”

Every single student in the class raised his or her hand, Harry noted as he looked around the room. It made sense, of course, as he and the others had emphasized the importance of learning this ability during training, having promised to work on it this year to help them not only with their fighting but also their classes.

“Mr. Potter,” Professor Snape said after looking around the room. Harry had seen his eyes widen ever-so-slightly at the sight before him, trying not to smirk at the sight.

“When in a fight, if the opponent doesn’t know and use Legilimency to pick up on surface thoughts, or if you have Occlumency shields to protect yourself from Legilimency, you get an advantage over your opponent because he or she can only know what spell you’ve cast by color or the effects,” Harry replied as the others lowered their hands. “It’s also useful because the spell you use might go right through a shield, and your opponent won’t know if they don’t recognize the color of the spell. Yelling out a spell gives away what you’re doing, though whispering a spell is almost as good as doing it silently if the spell is one you can’t do nonverbally yet.”

Harry knew that no one in the class was surprised by his answer as all in this very room had heard that response, though not word-for-word, last year when Zacharias Smith questioned him on why they were learning to shield nonverbally in May. Professor Snape, on the other hand, was obviously quite shocked by the detailed response.

“Very true, Mr. Potter. Ten points to Slytherin for your detailed response,” Professor Snape finally said softly. “Nonverbal casting takes careful concentration of the mind as well as mind power. I hope that you all have this, but I will not get my hopes too high up that you do, as not all witches and wizards do, not even those who have left this school.

“You will now divide into pairs,” he continued. “One of you will attempt to _silently_ jinx the other, while the other will attempt to repel the jinx in equal silence. These spells should not require the whispering that Mr. Potter mentioned in his response. Carry on.”

Harry could tell his classmates were all trying not to laugh as they broke into pairs. He and Draco faced one another as Daphne and Tracey paired off, Blaise and Theo beside them. Around the room, Harry saw Hermione and Neville, Padma and Terry, and Susan and Hannah working together, Justin finding Ron pretty quickly.

_Stupefy_ , Harry thought without moving his mouth, sending the spell at Draco out of nowhere while the blond was looking around the room. Just before the spell hit his friend, Draco’s shield appeared silently, his fellow Slytherin’s head snapping around to glare at Harry, who just grinned mischievously.

“Potter! Malfoy!” Professor Snape suddenly called. “Do that again!” Every was now watching the pair, looking interested but also as if they had expected this, as he and Draco stared one another in the eye, their wands pointed at the other.

_Stupefy_ , Harry thought again, trying not to give it away to Draco that he was launching the spell. Draco barely had the chance to throw up a shield, but he did at the last moment. Harry gave Draco a disappointed look before smiling at his friend, telling Draco that he had expected better from him but approved of how he had managed to escape getting Stunned.

Out of nowhere, a Stunner came at Harry, and he silently threw up a shield, turning around to see Tracey grinning at him, her blue eyes shining in amusement. Harry narrowed his eyes at her before sensing two more Stunners coming at him, throwing up his shield even as he turned to see Theo and Blaise trying not to laugh.

“Enough,” Professor Snape said before Harry could return the spells at his friends. “How many of you are accomplished at nonverbal casting?” Harry, Ron, and those with colored Journals in the room raised their hands while the others in the classroom began to raise their hands before stopping, not sure what to do. “For those of you hesitant about raising your hands, one of you explain why — _now_.”

“Sir, I can cast a shield, Stunner, and a few other spells nonverbally, but I can’t do everything like that yet,” Dean Thomas from Gryffindor said, “and I believe everyone else is in the same situation as me.” There were nods around the room at his addition.

“How is it that sixth years know _any_ nonverbal casting when it isn’t even touched upon until sixth year?” Professor Snape almost demanded, his eyes narrowed. “Potter, Davis, one of you explain!”

“Sir, my father taught Harry and myself, and we taught our closest friends,” Tracey said for them. “This was the summer after fourth year, though as the Second Task showed, Harry and I were also taught one or two spells before our fourth year, just in case.”

“As for the rest of the class, well, a few of them asked for a few private lessons in Defense last year because of Umbridge and the Dark Lord,” Harry added, purposely not using Lord Voldemort in his Head of House’s presence, knowing of his aversion to the name. “We taught them the very basics of nonverbal casting so that they could surprise the Death Eaters if they came around this summer, just in case.”

Harry knew that his professor was looking for lies in both of them, but neither he nor Tracey were lying. Samuel _had_ taught them nonverbal casting before fifth year, and Harry _had_ taught his classmates the basics for the summer, just in case. The others in the class had also asked for help with Defense because of Umbridge and Voldemort. Because they weren’t lying, just twisting the truth a bit, they would get away with this easily.

“Very well,” Professor Snape finally said quietly. “Each of you will show me a silent shield charm, Stunner, and the other spells you know. Those of you who are adept at nonverbal casting shall be proving it to me over the next month. Perhaps you’ll be able to assist your classmates again with it, making things easier on me as I teach you new spells and ways to fight Dark magic.”

Rolling his eyes, Harry moved to the side of the room with his friends and Ron. It was obvious that this was Professor Snape’s way of giving them permission to teach anyone they could to cast spells silently. Harry had already been planning on teaching the sixth years nonverbal casting at the beginning of this term while beginning the fifth years on it in a couple of months, so it didn’t really make a difference to him.

Still, he had to admit that it had been amusing to see how surprised Professor Snape had been at how advanced they all were in Defense. Unfortunately, he would have to wait a while before he found out how good they _really_ were, perhaps even years.

…

Harry headed down to Hagrid’s cabin after saying goodbye to his friends after lunch. As he walked, he heard a voice calling for him to wait. Turning, Harry couldn’t help but grin at the sight of Justin, Hannah, Susan, and Neville running to catch up to him. Behind them, he saw Su Li and Mandy Brocklehurst of Ravenclaw just leaving the castle.

“Hey, guys,” Harry greeted them as they caught up, all waiting for the two Ravenclaw girls. “So you lot decided to continue on in Magical Creatures as well, finally?” he asked. Out of the three Hufflepuffs, only Justin had known for sure that he was continuing, and Neville must have finally decided that morning as well.

“I remembered that some of the creatures might be in a garden, so knowing them will be helpful,” Neville said with a shrug just before they all headed down to Hagrid’s as a group.

“If I want to be a healer, I need to know what creatures might hurt a person,” Susan added helpfully. “Hannah just didn’t want to let me take the class alone.” Hannah stuck her tongue out at Susan, making them all laugh, even Su and Mandy.

“Well, we’d best hurry up,” Mandy said. “Class is about to start, and Hagrid is waiting.”

…

“That was a _lot_ more fun than the classes used to be,” Hannah commented, her tone full of surprise. Harry couldn’t help but agree. With such a small class, Hagrid had decided to let them spend the first few lessons talking about any sort of creature they wanted to know about, saying that he’d try to find a few of them if he could so that they could see them later in the year. Harry suspected someone, most likely Dumbledore, had spoken to Hagrid about his teaching, but they had had a lot of fun either way.

“Maybe the rest will regret not taking the class,” Neville suggested with a grin.

Harry had to laugh. “Let’s pretend to be freaking out because Hagrid somehow got ahold of another sphinx for today,” he told the group with a mischievous look on his face. “Get them really worried for our safety, and then start doing the homework on looking for more creatures to talk about Hagrid with tonight. They’ll probably ask why we’re doing the homework for _his_ class if we were so freaked out by it.”

Everyone burst out laughing at the idea, but they all agreed on it. Mandy and Su agreed to meet them in the library after dinner so that they could all search for interesting creatures together.

“Well, I’m off to Potions,” Harry sighed as they reached the Entrance Hall. “Anyone else coming along?”

“I’m coming,” Susan said, and Harry nodded, remembering her mentioning it at Marauder Manor. “I think Ernie is also coming from Hufflepuff, but that’s it for us.”

“Hermione and Ron are it for Gryffindor, I believe,” Neville informed Harry, and the Slytherin raised an eyebrow at Ron’s name. “From what I heard, Ron did some independent studying last year to get as high a score as he could on our Potions OWL; he got an ‘E’ on it. With Snape, it wouldn’t have been enough, but Slughorn is willing to accept him into the class with that score.”

“Wow,” Harry said. “I heard he’s aiming to be an Auror, so I guess it makes sense. Su, Mandy, know who’s coming from Ravenclaw?”

“Padma and Terry were talking about the class at lunch,” Su began slowly, sharing a look with Mandy. “I also believe Anthony is going to the class. There was one more, but I can’t remember who…” Mandy rolled her eyes at Su’s suddenly sarcastic tone.

“I’ll come with you and Susan, Harry,” Mandy said. “That’s it from Ravenclaw, though.”

“Well, then, let us go meet Draco, Blaise, and Daphne,” Harry declared with a grin. “Remember, pretend that Hagrid’s class freaked you out today!”

They all waved with small grins as they parted ways. Harry shared looks with Susan and Mandy before they all opened their eyes a bit wider and put on the best scared faces they could, coming up to the group waiting outside of Potions, all of the others coming off of a free period, so they were already there.

“Was Hagrid’s class that bad?” Tracey asked as she caught sight of them, gaining the attention of the others, who all turned and blinked at the sight of the trio.

“He managed to get a sphinx for the class,” Susan admitted in a hesitant voice, and all of the others realized what was so bad.

“Kept it on a chain, but still… Seeing one once was bad enough!” Harry exclaimed, knowing that they all remembered the Third Task. Internally, he was trying not to smirk at the others’ faces. “Why did I take this class again?”

“Because you’re an idiot?” Draco suggested, and Harry glared at his friend. “Sorry, I meant because you want choices for the future.” He didn’t sound sorry at all, but Harry let it go as the door to the potions lab opened.

Time to find out if Slughorn was a good teacher or not.

…

“Well, Potions will certainly be interesting this year,” Harry stated as he sat down heavily in a seat next to Ginny, reaching out to grab a pitcher of pumpkin juice to serve himself. “He’s already made it interesting for us, though I’m withholding judgment until I’ve had him a few more times.”

“I like how he had the potions brewed for us to identify,” Hermione commented. “Of course, Harry’s more pleased than he’s showing after winning that Felix Felicis.”

“Felix _what_?” Ginny asked, her brow furrowed.

“Felix Felicis,” Daphne repeated. “It’s Lucky Potion.”

Harry pulled out the small, glass bottle of gold potion he had won by brewing the best Draught of Living Death. Hermione still couldn’t figure out how he brewed so well in Potions, but he had decided not to tell her that following the instructions in the book wasn’t the way to become the best at potions. He had learned through trial and error during the summers and his first year at Hogwarts that there were better ways to do certain things with potions, so he used his free time to play with brewing potions, carefully of course. When he got ahold of books about ingredients and how they reacted with one another, his brewing had only gotten better, leaving Hermione, who rarely strayed from the textbook, behind. Only Daphne had come close to Harry’s potion, just slightly behind him, which made sense as she was working to become a Potions Mistress.

“Twelve hours of luck,” Harry informed those who hadn’t been in the class, slipping it into his pocket. “I’ll give Slughorn this: He certainly knows how to motivate a class to brew well.” The others from the sixth year Potions class nodded in agreement.

“How was Hagrid’s class?” Tracey asked, changing the subject to another one that interested many.

“Don’t ask,” Harry said, sharing fake-scared looks with Susan, Hannah, Neville, and Justin.

“What happened?” Ginny asked quickly. When it was obvious the five from the class weren’t going to speak, Blaise spoke up for them.

“They managed to tell us that Hagrid got ahold of a sphinx for the class,” he said, making everyone blink before they realized why the five looked so terrified. Well, all except Tracey did. She was giving Harry a look-over before glaring at him slightly, though she didn’t say a word.

Harry understood her look and shot her a pleading one for a quick, unnoticed moment, and she nodded slightly. Her eyes were shining with mischief as he internally sighed in relief.

“Is anyone else taking the class with you?” Maya asked from further down the table, where Harry hadn’t even noticed her until then.

“Just Su Li and Mandy Brocklehurst from Ravenclaw,” Neville said, glancing in their direction, as did Harry. He caught their eyes and saw the amusement in them, guessing that they were enjoying the small prank on their friends.

“You poor, brave people,” Terry said solemnly. Everyone was silent for a few moments before snickers began, quickly turning into full-out laughter.

After the laughter died down, everyone began eating, and smaller conversations began. Harry was first dragged into a conversation with Tracey, Daphne, Hermione, and Draco about the Ancient Runes class that morning with Ginny listening in to pick up on some of what they were saying. When Draco began to complain about the work load again, Hermione asked Harry how he had brewed his potion so well, drawing Daphne into _that_ conversation. Harry had to fight down a laugh when Hermione gaped at him when he suggested she not follow the book word for word in Potions while some actually _did_ laugh at her face.

All of the sixth years were laughing as Defense came up in the conversation, bringing about a retelling of their class for the younger students in the group. Harry knew that, if Professor Snape could hear their conversation, his Head of House would be fighting internally about taking points from his own House.

Finally, though, dinner was over, and they all went up to the library. Everyone had some sort of homework, Ancient Runes and Defense the most obvious for the sixth years. Harry settled down at a table with those from Care of Magical Creatures around him for once, Justin and Hannah, the two on the outside of the group, saving seats for Su and Mandy. Otherwise, Harry joined many of his friends in Ancient Runes homework, quickly moving through the translations and onto the essay in the first half hour in the library.

Just as he closed his textbook to reach for another one for his Runes essay, Mandy and Su joined them at the table, drawing some surprised looks. Trying not to grin, Harry closed his books, used his wand to dry the ink on his essay, and put his Runes homework away. With a new sheet of parchment and his personal copy of _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ , Harry showed his fellow Care of Magical Creatures classmates the book and opened it to begin doing his homework for Hagrid.

“Oi, Neville,” Harry said, leaning around Hannah to talk to his friend a few minutes later, all seven in Hagrid’s class looking through the same book. The Gryffindor looked up in curiosity. “You think Hagrid will be willing to talk about an Acromantula next week?”

“Harry, don’t tell me you want Hagrid to actually _find_ one of those!” Susan moaned, having turned her book back to see what information there was on the creature. “We won’t last five minutes with that in class.”

“I know _that_ , but we can always ask him not to bring one to class,” Harry replied.

“Mate, I think we all know that he’d bring one anyway if we mentioned it,” Justin said, shaking his head. “Why don’t we ask him to talk about the Merpeople instead?”

“Because I’ve already learned more than I ever wanted to by being near them up close?” Harry suggested sarcastically, turning the pages of his book to look for something else. “Oh, look at this! I wonder how much Hagrid knows about Billywigs.”

“Uh, what are you lot doing?” Theo finally asked hesitantly, making all seven look up. Harry had to hold in a snort as he saw the confused looks on everyone’s faces.

“Homework,” Susan, Hannah, and Justin chorused together, drawing more odd looks.

“For Hagrid’s class…?” Maya asked slowly, and they all nodded.

“I thought his class freaked you out today!” Daphne exclaimed, and all seven exchanged looks before they finally gave in on the game and burst out laughing.

“Oh, you lot are so easy to fool!” Harry said through his laughter. Slowly, he saw the others go from confused to upset to angry.

“You were _tricking_ us?” Hermione demanded, and Harry nodded with a large grin, his laughter finally dying down. “Why?”

“Because this was the best Care of Magical Creatures class we’ve ever had, and you’re missing out on an interesting class, now,” Mandy informed them with a grin.

“Hagrid let us choose creatures to talk about for the entire hour, and our homework is to find more we want to discuss with him for a few weeks before he finds a few of the creatures we’re interested in to show us,” Su continued.

“You lot are missing out on a great class,” Neville added with the smile that matched the other six’s. The others all shared looks, shaking their heads slowly, except for Tracey.

“Guys, I think we just got pranked,” Draco finally stated, making the seven burst out laughing until Madam Pince shushed them sharply.


	12. Chapter Twelve

The rest of the first week of classes passed by without a hitch, though the sixth years were heard grumbling about the increase in homework over even their OWL year from the various classes — they found no sympathy from any except the seventh years. Of course, Harry and his closest friends found the perfect revenge for the way the younger students were enjoying their torture on the first Friday of term after classes.

Leaders from all years but first as well as all the seventh years met in the Room of Requirement, which was in its usual form of the Hogwarts Protectors training area.

“We’re going to begin the testing tonight with the seventh years, continuing tomorrow and Sunday for the rest,” Harry said after everyone was seated comfortably on a couch, chair, or the floor, as this wasn’t an actual training session. The other leaders were looking at the seventh years sympathetically, but Harry and his friends had no sympathy for them as they would be the next to leave and go out into the real world after this school year.

“Each year will have a two hour turn, though we’re hoping the testing won’t take that long, with an hour between each testing session to give us a break,” Hermione continued. “We won’t all be testing you, but we’ll all be in some part of the Room, watching the tests, most likely doing our homework at the same time.” The seventh years all smiled in understanding while the rest smirked in amusement, though the fifth years seemed a bit more sympathetic after a week of their OWL year.

“Just so you know, teasing those who are going to be teaching and dueling you isn’t the smartest idea,” Justin said offhandedly, making those who had been smirking look suddenly stricken. It appeared they hadn’t even thought of that until now.

“We’ll be telling our year-mates to be here by 7:30 tomorrow morning,” Susan added, hitting Justin on the shoulder. “From 10:30 until lunch, we want the second years in here. After lunch will be the fifth years, then the third years, and finally the fourth.”

Harry saw the confusion on various faces by the odd ordering, so he decided to explain. “Our fellow sixth years need to learn to be awake early anyway, and this will give them more time for homework tomorrow. We want the second years as they should be the quickest, meaning an hour-and-a-half should be enough for them. The reason we want the third before the fourth is for the later curfew.” Nods of understanding were given after that.

“What about Sunday?” Euan asked curiously.

“Sunday, just make sure everyone has their Journals on them at all times, because the testing is going to be quite random on Sunday,” Theo informed them all with a mischievous grin on his face.

“All we want the others to know is that no one will be in trouble for anything during the testing unless we see that someone isn’t giving the testing his or her all,” Tracey said as she punched Theo in the side and glared at him.

“So tell them to try their best, and everything will be fine,” Padma finished. The other leaders nodded in understanding as the seventh years all shared looks, realizing this was their main instruction for whatever was about to come.

Harry and the others answered a few questions, but what they had said was pretty self-explanatory. Soon the leaders had gone, and only the seventh years were left. They were quite visibly nervous, having no idea what the testing was going to be. Many of Harry’s friends were beginning to smirk at the sight in front of them. Here was a group of students, all of them older than even the oldest of them — Hermione — and scared of the students just watching them. It was pretty amusing.

Deciding to put them out of their misery, Harry thought about what they needed the Room of Requirement to look like and watched it transform. The floor was suddenly covered with small circles, just large enough for a single person to see and stand on, with a name next to each, forming a circle. Half of the dots were for the seventh years, and the rest named those who taught them.

Harry watched as his friends found their dots and took their spots on one side of the circle, the seventh years quickly catching on and doing the same. Once everyone, including himself, was in place, Harry looked at the seventh years, his wand in hand.

“The testing it easy,” Harry told the seventh years. “You’re going to duel all of us, using any means you can think of to try to win. Remember, just try your best, as we’ll be watching and comparing thoughts on each person after you leave. Even if you don’t win, as long as you do well, it’s fine.”

Faces full of fear but determination faced Harry, and he knew this was going to be an interesting duel, especially as he had purposely not put any restrictions on it beyond the obvious one: No deadly or Unforgivable Curses. Oh, this would be fun.

As the leader of the Journal group, he knew they were all waiting for him to begin the duel, so he sent a silent Stunner at Katie Bell, and the duel began. Without the others realizing it, the spots they had been standing on had kept them in place, and they disappeared the moment Harry launched his spell, allowing everyone to move.

Katie dodged the spell with ease, and Harry ducked down as he pulled out his custom-made sword with his left hand. Around the room, he heard blades being drawn, both daggers and swords. Suddenly, before Harry could attack, the room changed into a rocky terrain, providing a different ground and places to duck behind.

Without warning, a sword swung at him, and Harry raised his own just in time to catch it, turning in the process. The Asian face of Cho Chang was level with his own, their swords holding the other up in the air between them. She suddenly twisted away, her wand rising in a silent spell that Harry blocked with his sword, the blade absorbing it. Their swords clashed again, a few sparks flying as metal hit metal.

Harry fired a Cutting Curse at her arm as they began to pull away, leaving a long, vertical cut that was quickly dripping blood down her arm, making it harder for her to grasp her sword. As she fought the pain she was in, backing away, Harry fired five Stunners in a row, watching as the last two broke through her hastily-raised shield and sent her down. He quickly healed her arm and tied her up before moving, making a mental note that Cho was good with a sword and he had seen her spellwork before, but she needed to learn how to use them together better.

In fact, looking around quickly, Harry realized that was something they were all having trouble with. That would be something they needed to work on after a review and some new moves.

Still, Harry moved on and had to duck quickly as a spell almost hit him from behind, spinning as he crouched. One of the Slytherins was dueling with Justin, who had dodged the spell without realizing someone was behind him to get hit by it. Harry fired a quick Stunner around Justin, hitting his Housemate before he could dodge the spell, receiving a grateful look from Justin before they both moved on.

Harry paused to take in the battle. Through the dust and chunks of rock flying through the air, which gave a very real feel to the chaos, he could see spells soaring in every direction and hear swords clashing together. On further observation, he noticed many of the combatants were stealthily using their daggers. Several bangs from prank products added to the confusion as well. In short, the Room was in utter bedlam, yet Harry could see the order, the organization, to it.

Daphne and Astoria were back-to-back as they took on four boys, one from each House. Natalie and Graham were sneaking around the edges of the battle, using the rocks for cover as they did stealth attacks with throwing knives and Stunners. Neville, Justin, Theo, Blaise, and Draco were all firing spells with power behind them as Hermione, Susan, Hannah, Maya, Padma, and Terry were their defense, defending them while also firing attacks at random. Ginny and Tracey had just found him, and they all stood back-to-back as well.

“They’re doing well,” Tracey called as Harry threw up a shield to ward off a Cutting Curse.

“Better than we expected,” Ginny agreed as she Stunned a Hufflepuff.

“If they’re all doing better than expected, this year will be quite interesting in terms of training,” Harry said quickly, ducking when both girls put a hand on each shoulder to push him down, allowing a spell to go between them before all three fired their own spells at the caster.

Conversation was non-existent after that as the group of younger students continued to take out the seventh years, one at a time. It took longer than any of them had been expecting it to for all the seventh years to be on the ground, Stunned and tied up, as the group had put up quite the fight, many learning in the middle of the battle to work together rather than alone. Finally, though, Harry and his friends were left panting as they looked around the room.

“That — was hard,” Blaise said, panting. The others nodded, Natalie, Graham, Astoria, Justin, and Theo rubbing their heads slightly to ease the slight headache that was an aftereffect of being Stunned.

“This group will make up the highest level for sure, though we should expect others to join them after tomorrow,” Harry decided, opening a bottle of water and draining half of it without removing it from his mouth.

“Let’s revive them, heal those who need it, clean everyone up, and send them on their way,” Hermione stated. Everyone began moving, healing and cleaning the seventh years up before reviving them all.

“You lot did _really_ well,” Harry informed the seventh years as they slowly stood and rubbed their heads, most likely confused as they and the Room looked as if the duel had never happened. “You should head back to your Common Rooms. We’ll see you at meals and again on Sunday in here.”

The seventh years began saying their goodbyes and leaving the room slowly, conversation beginning as they went into the corridor. Harry heard comments of the battle already being compared between the students, and he knew the story would be around the school by breakfast.

“We underestimated them,” Maya stated, and they all knew it was obvious.

“Bit hypocritical of us,” Astoria added, “since we’re always telling _them_ not to underestimate their opponents as you never know what they might have up their sleeves.” Many snorted in agreement, Harry among them.

“Did you see anyone that might need to be held back a bit?” he asked the group. The general consensus was that they were all fit to be in the top group of the training.

“Of course,” Hermione reminded them, “we need to see how the other years do before we officially decide anything to do with the various levels of training.”

“Yes, Hermione, we know,” Theo sighed, rolling his eyes at her reminder.

“Now, we should go back to our Common Rooms before curfew. Not _all_ of us are Prefects who can get away with being out late at night,” Blaise said, earning eye rolls from the various Prefects in the group.

…

“Ron’s the only suspicious one,” Susan noted as the group of friends looked at the sixth years, who had just entered the normal training room. Of the group, only Ron had his wand out and was looking around the room, his eyes narrowed.

“The others are still half asleep,” Padma said. “Ron seems to be fully awake and has realized that we’re _always_ on time unless we give advanced notice via Journals.”

“He’s been getting up early all summer,” Ginny informed the group. “I actually walked past his room on the way to the shower and heard him doing a basic work out some mornings.”

“Well, this’ll teach them not to let their guard down,” Theo said with a mischievous grin on his face before pressing a button in front of him.

Suddenly, the room that they were watching transformed into Hogsmeade, Death Eaters already launching spells from brooms above and on the ground around them. All of it was fake, obviously, but Harry and the others knew that the spells would Stun, hurt, and capture their classmates if they hit.

Ron threw up a shield that covered a large area and yelled for everyone to get under it and use their magic to strengthen it. Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan reacted instantly, their wands shooting up and adding magic as they moved to form a triangle with Ron. Michael Corner and Anthony Goldstein were the next to move, Ernie Macmillan right behind them. Then the girls began to move. Su and Mandy pulled Morag McDougal and Lisa Turpin with them as they joined the boys, Stephan Cornfoot and Kevin Entwhistle shielding them to give them the chance to back up. Zacharias Smith worked with Wayne Hopkins to get Megan Jones into the group.

“Good,” Maya said quietly. “They’re all in a group, and it appears they have a leader among them.”

Ron yelled to his classmates, “Boys, keep the shield up! Girls, Stun the Death Eaters on brooms first!”

In that instant, the way the fight was going changed. Brooms fell to the ground as Death Eaters were Stunned and tied up in ropes, falling to the ground or onto the various buildings. It didn’t take long for all the Death Eaters to be out of the air, brooms littering the ground near the students.

“Zach, Tony, Megan, and Su, go get the brooms — _all_ of them,” Ron said. “We’ll cover you.”

The four students, each one on a different side of the group, quickly ran out towards the brooms. Cutting Curses and Stunners were shot at the four, but a few of the others used a shield they had been taught near the end of their fifth year that allowed one to protect someone else, though it took more concentration and power than a normal shield.

Zacharias was shrinking the brooms and holding them in one hand as he collected as many as he could. Su, on the other hand, was banishing them back to the group, sometimes in twos and threes. Anthony stood in the middle of a group of brooms, shrunk them all, and summoned them to him. Mandy was even more creative as she used her wand to shoot out a large number of ropes, each one tying itself to a broom so that she could pull them back with her.

Soon, though, every student had a broom and was mounting them with Ron in the lead. “He noticed, then,” Terry was heard muttering. “I didn’t think any of them would.” Harry knew Terry was talking about the fact that the number of brooms was the exact number of students in the Room.

“Those with good throwing aim, over here!” Ron called, and some of the group of flying students went to him. “The rest of you, shield from the Death Eaters below.” The rest aimed their wands down and used shields, flying under the group talking to Ron. “You lot, each of you take three of these and throw them at the Death Eaters below. Hit them anywhere, and they’ll be Stunned in twenty seconds.”

Harry’s eyebrows rose in surprise. He had known the twins had given Ron his own set of supplies they had made, but he hadn’t thought that Ron would bring them with him. Well, well, Ron Weasley was certainly turning into an excellent fighter and leader. They would have to talk about this…

“You lot!” Ron called to those below, and they all looked up, not letting their shields go. “Throw Cutting Curses and Stunners down once we start throwing. We won’t be able to hit everyone with these things, and it’ll be good target practice. If you don’t think you can hit the Death Eaters, use Blasting Hexes around them to keep them in that one small area.”

Once the orders were given, Harry and the others could only watch as the sixth years obeyed without a hitch. Half of those who had been shielding used Blasting Hexes to keep the Death Eaters in place while the rest attacked them directly. Ron and the others threw the small, metal balls down at the Death Eaters, every three out of four hitting their mark.

As the sixth years landed, the dust dispersed, and Harry saw that the Death Eaters were all down, unconscious. Ron’s plan had done it, and Harry knew that it had been done off the top of his head with what he had seen around him and what he had.

“We might have to work one-on-one with Ron once or twice a week,” Harry said softly as the Room returned to its normal form. He saw the others nod out of the corners of his eyes before he stood and headed to the door that led to the sixth years.

“Excellent!” he called as he entered the room, clapping with a proud look on his face. “You won the battle without losing a single one of you. Well done. We’ll be calling you in sometime tomorrow again, so keep your Journals on the cords around your necks all day, ready for our call. Now, go work on that mountain load of homework we have.” The sixth years laughed before they began to talk, many going towards Ron immediately.

…

Much of the training that day went just as well as the first two tests had. The fifth years had worked as best they could during the summer, and a few were level with the sixth years ahead of them while one or two needed to be slowed down a little bit. Fourth and third years were mixed between their levels with two fourth years able to work with the fifth years.

It was the second years that showed the largest difference. They were obviously at the bottom, below anyone else, but they were doing better than anyone expected. Of course, Euan was beyond his classmates by this point, ready to work with the fourth years.

“Just watch,” Harry had told the young Gryffindor when Euan had begun to ask why he had been pulled away from the others as they paired up and began to duel.

“Oh,” was all Euan had said as he saw his classmates were dueling awkwardly, missing very obvious attacks that he could see in an instant. He hadn’t realized how far he had come in just a month of training with the older students, but the training from Natalie, Graham, Astoria, and Harry had improved his ability to fight more than he had seen at the time.

“You’ll duel Graham, and we’ll compare how you duel there to the other years to decide where to place you,” Harry had informed Euan, and so they had.

Now, though, it was Sunday, and it was time for a different sort of testing.

After breakfast in the Room of Requirement, made by the house-elves from Marauder Manor with permission from the residents of said Manor to use the elves for breakfast on the weekends, Ron was called in. By eight in the morning, Ron was there, standing just inside the room with his wand out.

“Ron, you can put your wand away,” Ginny told her brother as she entered the room and gestured to one of the chairs that had just appeared in the room at a long, rectangular table. “That isn’t the sort of testing we’re doing today.”

Ron returned his wand to his holster and moved to take a seat, not at all surprised when the others quickly found spots around the table. Harry was sitting to his left and Ginny to his right, with him at the head of the table.

“We decided on a different sort of testing for you, Ron,” Harry said as he looked at his redheaded friend, trying not to smile at the nervousness Ron was trying to hide. “I think you’ll enjoy this testing.”

“What is it?” Ron asked, sounding somewhat suspicious, and Harry grinned. Looking at the table in front of them, Harry pictured what he wanted and watched as it appeared.

“Ginny, Tracey, and I are going to direct a squad of Death Eaters each in an invasion of Hogwarts, all with our minds, and _you’re_ going to use your mind to direct the defense of teachers, Order members, and students,” Harry informed in, gesturing to the replica of Hogwarts in front of them. Little figures that were the Death Eaters stood outside the castle, one squad glowing green, another red, and the third purple. There were a large number of glowing blue figures inside the castle, around a dozen that were orange, and perhaps fifty that were yellow.

“I’ll be green, Ginny red, and Tracey purple,” Harry continued. “The blues are the students, and the size declares the year. Orange is the professors, and yellow is the Order. No one else can interfere, and it’ll be just like a real invasion with Ginny, Tracey, and I unable to communicate unless some of our forces are close together. We’ll talk now for the five minutes before the battle begins. I’d think of strategies.”

Harry quickly began whispering to Ginny and Tracey, knowing Ron was thinking fast. This test was to see how good of a strategist the redhead was. If he did anywhere near as well as he did yesterday, they would find a way to use that ability to their advantage somehow.

The battle began, and Harry was proud to see that Ron had hidden the younger students in areas less likely to be attacked, yet had them prepared to ambush anyone who might come their way. The teachers, Order members, and seventh years were in the Entrance and Great Halls for the direct attack. The rest of the students had been strategically placed throughout the school and around the secret entrances and best-known shortcuts.

Harry and the girls went on into the castle in various ways, pretending to be the Death Eaters, who wouldn’t expect students to be waiting for them. Then the battle commenced, and both students and Death Eaters died out. Ron’s strategy was working well, with some of the older students running to where the largest battles were, joining in to help their younger classmates.

In the end, the strategy worked. All the Death Eaters were gone, even if Ron had lost almost half his people. He understood the necessity of losing some people to win in the end. It had been an excellent plan.

“Well done, Ron,” Blaise commended him, looking at the castle model closely to see what was left. “You showed your knowledge of the school well.”

“But… you three fell for my obvious plan,” Ron said, looking at Harry and the girls in confusion.

“That’s because the _Death Eaters_ would fall for it, Ron,” Ginny said in exasperation. “The last thing they’d expect would be students hidden around the school, waiting to ambush and duel them. We were playing the Death Eaters as best we could.”

“Oh,” Ron said. “That makes sense. If that’s the case, then I’ve got some other ideas that might help us in a battle like this one.”

“Excellent, Ron,” Terry told him. “In your spare time, if you can think of ideas, please let us know.”

“Ron, we decided something,” Hermione continued before Ron could say anything to Terry. “Once a week, we want you in here with us for an hour or two, talking strategy and figuring out plans.”

“Just me?” Ron asked, surprised.

“Just you,” Ginny told her brother with a grin, and he returned it without thinking. “What you did yesterday, taking control of the sixth years… Ron, you really made me proud, and I think our entire family would agree with me.” Ginny stood up and hugged her brother, her face on his shoulder as he was still sitting. Harry just smiled softly, happy to see Ginny getting along with her brother so well.

“Ron,” Harry said, and Ginny took that as her cue to return to her seat, Ron looking up at Harry. “We’re going to ask you to join us at random times during training, sending you to each year at least three times this month. We want you to get used to what their strengths are. Otherwise, your training will vary between the sixth and seventh years so that you can both learn and help our classmates.”

Ron nodded in understanding, realizing that Harry and the others truly trusted him and wanted his help. Harry saw the pride in Ron as he sat up a bit straighter, obviously realizing that he was important to this group of close friends that most thought they would never get close to. Though they never said anything, Harry and the others knew that the school looked up to them because of what they had shown during Hogwarts Protectors training and because of the Journals. A word of praise or a show of how important even one of the group saw a person made them work harder and sit up. Ron was the same as he learned how the group wanted his help with strategy and ideas.

“If you stay, those in the highest level should be here soon,” Harry said. “They’re mostly seventh years, and you are going to be training mostly with them.”

Ron nodded and sat back to wait as his chair turned into an armchair and moved around the room, not surprised as this happened quite a bit in this room. When the chairs had finished moving, everyone was in a large circle with enough empty armchairs for the seventh years that were almost to the Room.

…

The rest of the day was spent doing homework between bringing the various groups back to the Room. Today was being used to show the groups who they would now work with, the years being mixed up a bit.

The group of mostly fourth years had been surprised to see Euan among them, but the one-on-one duels that each group was doing so that Harry and the others could be sure everyone was in the correct group showed that Euan belonged among them.

Overall, it had been a very good weekend with everyone placed in their groups and basic training schedules planned out.

Unfortunately, the next morning was going to hold a surprise for them all.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Lord Voldemort watched from atop a hill as his Death Eaters attacked the Muggle village below. Screams filled the air as fires burned down the buildings. He knew his Death Eaters were enjoying themselves, and he waited until they had all left and the buildings were destroyed before raising his wand for the first time the entire raid.

“ _MORSMORDRE!_ ”

Voldemort Disapparated as his mark, the Dark Mark, rose into the air above the destruction that had been left behind.

…

****  
_**DARK MARK SEEN ABOVE ANOTHER MUGGLE VILLAGE!**_  
 _ **HUNDREDS DEAD!**_  
 _ **MUGGLE-BORN NOW AN ORPHAN!**_

…

Harry was calmly eating his breakfast Monday morning when the mail arrived. Gasps around the Hall as everyone began to fall silent drew his attention, and he turned to see something that turned his blood cold.

A tawny owl had flown into the Hall slightly behind the rest of the owls, a black envelope in its beak.

Though the envelopes had yet to be seen since Voldemort had returned, everyone had heard of them before, and they had all feared the sight of one. The Ministry had begun the terribly sad tradition of using black envelopes to inform a person of the loss of a family member during the first war with Voldemort. It was a way for the news to be told to all around the unfortunate person so that those around him or her could help without said person having to tell anyone. A very sad thing, but it had its advantages, despite making those in the room so scared that they couldn’t breathe until the owl landed.

Harry watched along with the others as the owl narrowed in on a table of second years, Euan among them. In fact, the owl settled down in front the young Ravenclaw girl sitting beside Euan, who instantly put an arm around her as she sat there, frozen. Her hands numbly moved to remove the envelope, and the owl lightly bit her finger before leaving the Hall, silence in its wake.

Euan took the envelope for the young girl, who Harry recognized as Rebecca Tyler, a Muggle-born second year, and slit it open with his breakfast knife. Opening the parchment within, Euan’s face fell instantly as he read it before he folded it back up, returned it to the envelope, and engulfed Rebecca in a hug.

Harry stood without realizing it, walking quickly across the Hall until he was behind Rebecca. The girl sitting beside her moved over so that he could sit, and Harry put his own arm around Rebecca as Euan continued to comfort her.

With his free hand, Harry took the letter Euan was holding out to him, and read it quickly. It basically said that her entire village had been completely destroyed last night, and her family was gone. The Ministry was very sorry for her loss and would assist her in any way possible.

Rebecca suddenly began to cry as the shock wore off a little, her shoulders shaking. Harry caught Euan’s eye and they both shared an understanding. Standing, Harry pulled Rebecca up from her seat and into his arms, carrying her from the Hall with Euan holding her hand and following. The Hall was completely silent as they left.

“ _Ankh, tell Ginny to have Tracey tell our teachers I’ll come by to pick up any assignments for the day around lunch. I won’t be in class until this afternoon,_ ” Harry hissed to his snake, drawing the snake from his place on his shoulder.

“ _Of course, Harry,_ ” Ankh replied. “ _Help her, and I’ll stay with Ginny for the morning._ ” Harry nodded and watched as his corn snake slithered down his body and quickly disappeared around the corner of the corridor, headed back the way they had come.

“Telling Ginny that you’ll be missing classes this morning?” Euan asked, also watching Ankh, and Harry nodded.

He and Euan went to the Room of Requirement, Rebecca crying into Harry’s shoulder as they walked as quickly as they could. They finally arrived there and settled down on a large, comfortable couch that was in the middle of the sitting room that had been created at Euan’s request. Rebecca was still in Harry’s arms, holding him tightly as he held her on his lap, with Euan rubbing her back slowly.

Rebecca began to calm down slowly, her tears abating. Her breathing calmed, and she relaxed her body. Tears had exhausted her, and Harry knew the instant she was asleep.

“We’ll talk to her when she wakes up,” he told Euan softly, and the Gryffindor nodded while watching his friend.

…

Amelia Bones stood with Samuel Davis on the Magical Law Enforcement floor of the Ministry. The Aurors were understandably upset as they had just been told by their Director that another school-age child was now an orphan because of Lord Voldemort.

“At least she has an aunt willing to take her,” Amelia sighed as she saw the somber mood.

“That will make things easier than it is for Euan,” Samuel agreed, thinking about the boy who had spent the rest of the summer at Marauder Manor because a search for more family came up empty. “How do you think she’s taking it?”

“I’m not sure, but we’ll probably hear about it in a letter home in the next day or two,” Amelia said. “Now, let’s go to my office and figure out how we can help Ms. Tyler and her aunt.”

…

“You’ll probably stay with your aunt, then,” Harry told Rebecca a couple hours after breakfast. “The main reason Euan stayed with me this summer is because the Ministry couldn’t find any family for him to stay with.

“The school and our year will take good care of you, Rebecca,” Euan emphatically told the girl. “They all care and want the best for those of us who have lost family.”

“If you need anything, go to a leader, and we’ll help,” Harry added.

“Thank you,” Rebecca whispered while wiping away more tears. “It’s just…”

“Hard?” Euan suggested softly, and Rebecca nodded. “It’ll be hard for a while, but it gets easier to deal with over time, even if the pain never goes away. I still hurt when I think of my Mum or my Dad or my sister Liz, but I know deep down they’re still with me and still love me, and I love them. It hurts, but I’m learning to live with it.”

“And I never knew my parents,” Harry continued just as softly. “Still, I see pictures and hear stories about them, and it makes me sad that I never knew them. Sometimes I wish they were here so that I could hear from _them_ what they think of me and what I’m doing, rather than what others say they’d tell me. There have also been times that I’ve wanted my Mum to comfort me or my Dad to give me advice, and I have to remember they’re not there. It’s hard at times, not even knowing what I’ve missed, but I live with it. You’ll learn to as well.”

Rebecca nodded silently and curled in closer to Harry, who tightened his grasp on her while Euan held her hand as tightly as she was holding his. The three of them were orphans due to Voldemort, and they’d help one another and anyone else who was in the same situation. Harry knew many, including Susan, were in the same situation as him, and many would join the two second years with him over the next few years. All they could do was talk it out together and help one another as best they could.

They had to hope it would help them survive.

…

Harry basically threw himself onto a couch in The Den after his Potions class, emotionally exhausted.

“That bad?” Ginny asked as she settled down more gracefully beside him.

“We’re in for a tough few years with Voldemort killing the families of those here at Hogwarts,” he sighed, moving to lean his head on her shoulder with his eyes closed. His voice and body showed his exhaustion from that morning, and he knew many were worried and had been afraid he wouldn’t survive afternoon classes.

“Two different types of orphans in the school at once,” Susan added from an armchair across from them. “Harry and I are part of one type while Rebecca and Euan are the beginnings of the second.”

“Those who lost their parents last time and those losing them this time,” Hannah agreed softly. “I’m not sure which is worse…”

“They’re both terrible and just as bad in their own ways,” Harry stated, his eyes still closed and his head now in Ginny’s lap as she played with his hair. “Neither is worse than the other, and there’s no point comparing them.”

“Good point,” Hannah sighed, and Harry heard her shaking her head.

“I’ll cover for you today, Harry,” Maya said, and Harry opened his eyes to send her his thanks silently, receiving a nod in reply before he closed his eyes again. “Come on, Tracey, let’s go train my classmates.”

The two girls stood and went off to train the fifth years, Theo calling after them to wait up as he’d help.

…

Harry sat in the Room of Requirement, his textbooks spread out on a table around him even as he watched the second years and a few others train through the special window. Looking at Rebecca Tyler, Harry thought about the changes that had come up in the past week due to the attack. One of the most noticeable was the fact that Rebecca was never left alone by her fellow second years, Euan being her most constant companion, understandably.

Another thing Harry had noticed, however, was that the second years were improving in leaps and bounds during training. He had a feeling it had to do with the obvious fact that it was their year-mates who had lost their families to the Death Eaters, so they had ample reason to train as much as they could. Completely understandable, if not hard to watch.

Rebecca herself had been found by Harry and his friends in the Room of Requirement with Euan at times when no one else was training that week, learning from him what he had been taught over the summer. The first time had been a bit awkward for the second years, until Harry had told them, “You can train in here any time you wish, and bring anyone you want. Just promise me you’ll try to get at least one older student to be in the room in case something happens you don’t know how to fix.”

Since then, Harry had come across the second years doing extra training around their homework no less than five times in less than a week, given than it was only Sunday evening, not even a full week since the attack. Still, they had always had someone with them, usually a fourth year who worked with Euan, when found outside of training sessions, so no one complained about it.

In fact, the second years’ determination appeared to be spreading to the other students. Some of the third years had been seen either joining them or making their own extra training sessions this past weekend. It wasn’t unusual for Harry to enter the Room of Requirement to find the normal training room empty with half a dozen, if not more, doors that led off to separate training rooms, all with at least three people in them.

Still, Harry and his friends had quietly spoken among themselves of the noticeable improvements of all groups and done nothing more about it. What was there to do, anyway?

Watching the second years through the window after watching the third years just half an hour before, both groups being taught by Maya, Astoria, Natalie, and Graham, showed Harry just how much the training helped. He would have to speak to the others and watch for another week before deciding if the two youngest groups shouldn’t just be grouped together for training, as they were basically at the same level now.

Sighing, Harry shook his head lightly and returned to his Runes translations, wishing many things in his mind at once, the two foremost being that the war wasn’t affecting the younger students so terribly and that he didn’t have so much homework.

…

Euan shook his head as Andrew Kirke left his table in The Den after their quick conversation. The first year was most definitely the leader of his year, but Euan was getting a bit tired of telling Andrew that the time to get Journals was decided by the sixth year leaders and the rest with colored Journals, not _him_.

Glancing up, Euan caught sight of Harry and Ginny walking into The Den, their hands intertwined between them. Making a snap decision, Euan shoved his books and parchments into his bag and quickly moved over to the couple. They had just sat down on a couch when he caught up to them, shifting a bit on his feet in his nervousness about what he was going to do.

“Hey, Euan,” Harry said with an easy grin, but Euan saw the tension in his jaw and eyes that gave away the Slytherin’s worry. “Need something?”

“The first years want Journals,” Euan stated bluntly, deciding it was better to just get it over with rather than drawing it out. Harry raised an eyebrow and shared a look with Ginny before turning back to Euan.

“Do you think they’re ready for them?” Harry asked him, and Euan blinked. Yes, he knew it had only been just over two weeks since school had started, but he and the other second year leaders could tell the first years were ready for the Journals. Euan just wasn’t sure why he was being asked.

“Euan, part of being a leader is knowing when to listen to others,” Ginny said when he hesitated. “Harry is the leader of leaders, so he listens to all of the other leaders, and we leaders listen to those in our House and year. In the end, Harry hears what he needs to and makes a decision.”

Euan nodded thoughtfully as he thought it over, realizing that it made sense. “Well, Rose, Sally, Tom, and I all agree that they’re ready,” he said, referring to his fellow leaders. When he saw Harry’s raised eyebrow as both a challenge and a way to show his skepticism, Euan elaborated. “Unlike when your years were first years, and even when the third and fourth years were just arriving, there was a majority of the school _against_ the idea, or only half of it. Now?” Euan shrugged. “Now the entire school gets along without the House rivalries, which almost pressures them to give it a try, and they realize that they like it. They’ve got a better example now that they did even two or three years ago, from what I’ve heard, so they’re getting ready for Journals faster.”

Harry was nodding slowly while Ginny looked at him, a small smile on her lips. It only took Euan moments to realize that he had just added to something that anyone truly close to Harry knew about: Helping Harry realize how much he had done for Hogwarts since he arrived.

“Tell the first years who have been bothering you to be in the Journal Room Saturday at ten, and pass word around that training will be cancelled for half-an-hour for it,” Harry decided, looking at Euan, and Euan glanced in the direction of the door that led to the hidden room that housed the black Journals. Euan then nodded as his gaze returned to Harry. He knew that by dinner the news would be known by all with Journals.

After thanking Harry and getting up, Euan heard one exchange from the couple behind him that made one side of his mouth lift up.

“It’s working better than I could have ever dreamed when I first arrived here,” Harry said, his voice almost one of awe.

“That’s because you’re the one leading it,” Ginny replied.

…

Amelia sighed in relief as the door to her office closed for the last time that morning, sinking back into her chair as Samuel reclaimed his seat next to her.

“I’m glad we finally found homes for all of those families,” she said, her voice soft, pleased, and tired. Amelia couldn’t help but remember the faces of those who had escaped Death Eater raids to Grimmauld Place thanks to their Hogwarts-age children. They had been completely devastated by both the knowledge that their friends and neighbors were dead and that they had lost everything they hadn’t been able to take with them, including their homes.

Finally, after weeks of working at it, the Ministry had purchased homes in various places all over Britain, most in suburbs, though some were in villages, towns, and cities, and all of them Muggle. Amelia and Samuel had agreed that purchasing a hundred houses around Britain would be best as they knew more families would be displaced before this war was finished. Those homes had been furnished and prepared for almost-instant residents; fifteen of them were now filled.

“Yes, it’s nice to know that they have their own homes again,” Samuel agreed, and Amelia knew he was almost thinking of the awkwardness that had overcome the families once the children had left for Hogwarts, taking away the easy connection each family had to one another. “I’ll have some of the Second Force check in on them for the first month, just to be sure they’ve adjusted well.”

Amelia nodded in thanks, and they fell silent, each to their own thoughts on the war.

…

The same day that the first years received their Journals, they began their training as part of the HPs and the second and third years merged into one group. They now had, officially, seven groups if one included those with colored Journals as their own group, which most did, in fact, do.

In just two weeks of training, Harry and his friends had seen some massive improvement — more than they had expected. Seeing proof of the war was truly motivating the students to work harder than ever before, and everyone was learning new spells and combat moves each time they gathered together. By the time the groups would meet again, the moves and spells had been perfected and incorporated into how they fought as if they had been using the various techniques for months, not just a few days at most.

As the final week of September came and went, the students of Hogwarts began to move faster as they fought and more gracefully overall. They all knew that the staff was watching them as they went out on the grounds to either the Quidditch Pitch or the lake to run each morning before classes, many also going to the Room of Requirement, but no one said a word about it. In the Room of Requirement, many had taken to arriving early for training and slipping into side rooms to use weights and other Muggle equipment after some Muggle-borns suggested it, evening going as far as to add a room that resembled the basement of Marauder Manor on a permanent basis against the main training room, though it was larger and part of it looked like a Muggle gym.

Within the first month of school, except for four Slytherin sixth years, everyone was working hard every single day of the week. If they weren’t in classes, they were doing homework or were at Quidditch practice or participating in the few other clubs the school had or were training in the Room of Requirement, both with teachers and on their own. In fact, Harry and his friends had to remind the students of Hogwarts to also have fun, play games, and enjoy themselves as well.

Time seemed to fly by as September slid into October, homework piling up higher and higher for the oldest three years. Attacks occurred at night in those two weeks, though they could fortunately say that no more students lost family members. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the Muggles caught in the raids. The atmosphere in the Great Hall after each attack was grim, but there was an undercurrent of determination so strong that Harry was surprised none of the teachers commented on it.

This determination seemed to fuel the sixth and seventh years the most as they dueled each other and their teachers. With their greater range of spells and other combat moves, they had begun to slowly lean in different directions, though Harry had noted the fifth years beginning to follow this during the second week of October.

Some of the students preferred magic over swords and daggers, though all learned how to use them well. Others preferred to use the Muggle techniques of fighting, focusing on that a bit more. The easiest way to tell was spotting which hand the wand and sword or dagger was in and if the student changed throughout the battle or not as they learned how to use both wand and sword together even more effectively. Each group had the small handful who used both evenly, some of that group looking uncomfortable with either, though they still fought well.

Finally, by the time October was half over, things began to come together. Comments made by Ron during their weekly conversations with him, words left unsaid but always there, hidden behind things spoken aloud, began to come forth. Thoughts created while watching the sixth and seventh years begin to specialize in various methods of fighting and seeing the next level right behind them and the rest following, only the first years being left behind as they were taught the basics at a pace that was faster than the year before.

Conversations between the group of friends took place many times during those two weeks of October, ideas taken from sources both inside and outside the group brought forth and decided upon, plans made. The decision was unanimous and worked on for hours. In the end, one thing was clear.

The Hogwarts Protectors were about to become an army.

 


	14. Chapter Fourteen

Harry stood facing the sixth and seventh years. After a month and a half of training, it had become obvious that the oldest two years and some fifth years were all at almost the same level, and they had been organized into one group. The fourth and the majority of the fifth years as well as one or two third and Euan made up the next highest level with the second and third years making up the next. The first years, who were improving in leaps and bounds, made up the final, fifth group, unless one counted Harry and his friends.

“Today is not going to be a normal training session,” Harry announced, and he could see the shock on the faces in front of him as many sat up straight in their armchairs. “Instead, we are going to try something new. It has come to our attention over the past few weeks that many of you are beginning to specialize in how you fight, attracted to one way or another or wishing there was another way to fight.” Harry saw ashamed looks as some squirmed and others looked at their knees. “None of this is a problem.” Faces looked at him in shock, and he held back a grin as he continued.

“Though we have never truly showed this, those of us here before you actually specialize in many ways,” Harry told them, gesturing to his friends sitting in their armchairs in a line on either side of him, and he knew most didn’t believe him. “Some, like Maya, Graham, and Natalie prefer to use stealth and quick spells to take out their opponents rather than going head-on with them unless they have to. Others, like Susan and Hannah and even Justin, fight when they must but prefer to learn all the healing spells we’ve been able to find, practicing them all they can and healing us when training is done.

“Blaise, Theo, Draco, Astoria, and Daphne are some of the best strategists we have in the group, thinking on their feet and at a moment’s notice, even as they fight head-on or on the sidelines,” Harry continued, seeing that those in front of him were beginning to recognize these traits as well as finding themselves in these descriptions. “Hermione, Terry, and Padma find the most spells and do the research, usually fighting from slightly behind someone else but taking out more at once because they use rarer or lesser-used spells to fight, even if they may take longer to use.

“Luna, Ginny, Tracey, and I live to be the unexpected, Luna in how she attacks randomly and my two fellow pranksters and myself in how we use pranks to add to a duel. Neville specializes more in using his weapons and wand as effectively as he can, casting fast and hard.”

Harry paused, seeing everyone let this sink in. He let them have a minute or two before he continued, knowing they needed to hear this to understand what was going to happen.

“We all can fight with two weapons at once, whether it’s two swords, a sword and wand, sword and dagger, or even two daggers. And some of us specialize in multiple areas. Many of us are great at speed and stealth or using multiple weapons or using spells effectively. How we fight varies depending on the situation, and you’ve all seen how we adapt and fight with all we have, even if it means we can’t use that which we specialize in.

“We’ve decided that it’s time to find where each of you want to specialize and will excel,” Harry finally announced, and there were a few whispers at that, which were quickly silenced as they looked back up at him. “The Hogwarts Protectors are going to move past being just a way to train you lot how to fight well enough to protect Hogwarts. We’re going to become an army trained to protect Hogwarts!”

The students in front of him were all shocked by his words before they sank in, and he saw their approval grow as words and nods were exchanged before him. The idea of being an actual army appealed to them, and they were quickly realizing that it entailed specializing in how they fought.

“How will this work?” Zacharias Smith called eventually, and they all quieted down to hear Harry’s answer.

With this help of his friends, the idea was explained.

For the rest of October, there would be an overview of the many different areas of specialization; at the end of the month, the students would choose their area of concentration while still continuing with the general training. Once everyone had decided on their area of expertise, there would be a weekly meeting every Sunday morning for three hours where they dueled and continued to learn weapons and spells. Three times a week for two hours, they would meet in their specialization groups while another three hours a week would be used to learn other ways of fighting or ways to help in the army.

What would be taught ranged from weaponry to spells to healing to multiple weapons used in various ways including wands, as well as fighting from the air on brooms with wands and thrown projectiles. There would also be a required meeting for an hour every other week that everyone attended on strategy — Harry and the others were privately hoping to draw out more strategists to help Ron and perhaps give them an edge if Hogwarts was attacked, like they feared would happen. Those strategists would then meet with Ron weekly, setting up their own meetings that Ron would pass on to Harry and the others, to work together.

When the explanations were done, no one could complain. The ideas were thorough and had obviously been worked on for ages, and the idea even involved them doing this with the next group just as this one began their specialized training, and it would continue to be repeated after that.

How this would work out depended on the students, and that meant it was in good hands.

…

Harry’s mind was full of ideas for the HPs, resignation, and worry as he walked to the Headmaster’s office the Monday after the new ideas for training the highest level had been announced and well-received. He had been handed a rolled-up note by Danielle, Terry’s cousin, at lunch to meet with Professor Dumbledore after dinner, and he still wasn’t exactly sure how he felt about the summons, though it had pleased him that the scroll had been offered earlier in the day rather than right before the requested time.

“ _Go, talk to him, keep as calm as you can and hear him out before you speak, and come find me in the Room of Requirement once it’s done,_ ” Ginny had told him at dinner as he hesitated, and Harry had taken the words to heart.

Just before knocking on the door, Harry took a few deep breaths and reinforced his Occlumency shields to calm himself, hoping it allowed him to control his temper this time around. Then, he knocked and opened the door after he heard, “Enter,” from the Headmaster.

Harry claimed the seat across from Professor Dumbledore, looking at the old wizard as he sat behind his desk, his hands intertwined, blue eyes dull and sad, and body looking tired. For once, the famous, powerful wizard looked his age and wasn’t trying to hide it.

“Thank you for coming, Harry,” Professor Dumbledore said softly. “After my previous mistakes, I was unsure if you would respond to my summons.”

“I calmed down over the summer and thought about it all again, Professor,” Harry replied, and the Headmaster nodded slowly.

“As did I, Harry, as did I,” he said. “It allowed me to realize that I have truly done wrong by you, and I hope I can make up for my mistakes, perhaps teach you things about Voldemort that you do not know.”

“Professor, I appreciate the offer, but history shows that it’s best I’m cautious,” Harry stated, leaning back in his chair a bit. “You have been manipulating me and trying to control me my entire life, ever since that terrible Halloween night, yet you have never trusted me. I wish to work with you, I truly do, but it will take time and effort on your part, as I’ve been trying to work with you for years. It’s your turn, Professor, to show that this can work.”

Professor Dumbledore heaved a great sigh, his blue eyes closing, but he nodded. Of course, Harry knew that this was going to take time, and Professor Dumbledore would find it hard to change his ways. He was so used to having every question answered and his orders followed, all without question, that this would be an enormous change for the Headmaster. They would disagree, and Harry would most likely leave the office in a huff, but they would try to make it work.

“I will do my very best, Harry,” Professor Dumbledore sighed, “but it cannot be all one-sided.”

“Of course not, Headmaster,” Harry replied with a nod, even as he felt something cold settle in his stomach, a forewarning of what was about to come.

“You appear to have influence and knowledge beyond what anyone expected, and you have disappeared when not at school since Voldemort returned,” Dumbledore said, and Harry noted the omission of his kidnapping yet again. “Where do you go, and how do you know what you do?”

“I cannot say where I spend my time outside of school, and my sources are private and not to be disclosed at the request of the people themselves,” Harry stated calmly, keeping his emotions at the questions and prodding into his life in check. “Professor, I will work with you and talk to you about the war and give suggestions for ideas and even share some information I have acquired, but I do not appreciate your prodding where you have no right to prod. You know that I know of the Order and the Prophecy, and we both know that I do things you do not expect, just as we know that I know things you do not or don’t expect me to, but there is no reason for me to tell you anything about this unless I wish to.”

As Harry spoke, he met Professor Dumbledore’s gaze head-on, and for the first time, he allowed the Headmaster to sense his Occlumency shields. The Headmaster’s eyes widened ever-so-slightly, and Harry barely nodded before turning away from the blue orbs.

“My mind is my own, and I will protect it and all it contains with everything I have,” Harry continued. “We will work well together, but only when you stop trying to force things and offer information yourself without expecting something in return. When you can learn to do that, we’ll be getting somewhere. Now, I believe I’ve given you plenty to think about, so I’ll take my leave.”

Harry stood and left the office without another word or glance at the man he was leaving behind, his body only relaxing after he had completely left the corridor that led to the Headmaster’s office. His emotions and tension had led to the more formal speaking that had been drilled into him all summer for the Wizengamot by Sirius and the others, but that didn’t mean he enjoyed using it.

Still, he had said what needed to be said, kept his emotions in check, and he felt he had made headway with the Headmaster.

…

Albus Dumbledore stared at the door that had closed behind a very special Slytherin, his mind a whirlwind of turbulent thought.

“I told you that boy would be special and would do great things,” the voice of the Sorting Hat said from its place on a shelf in the office, interrupting Professor Dumbledore’s incredulous thoughts. “He walked into un-walked territory and made a possible path that could either go back to how it was or grow, and the rest followed, making it larger and paving it so that others will follow without hesitation. You, Albus, underestimate the boy, and that will be your downfall if you do not smarten up and give him a chance.”

Professor Dumbledore stared at the Hat for another few moments before sighing and running a hand down his face. Fawkes sang softly, and it calmed Professor Dumbledore as he thought about the meeting he had just been through with a clear head and an open mind, standing to pace as well as put a copy of the memory into his Pensieve.

He had a lot of thinking to do.

…

Harry walked into the Room of Requirement after wandering the castle for over an hour to calm himself down and think about the meeting. He immediately spotted Ginny and made his way over to her, settling down easily onto the couch beside her, his arm wrapping around her shoulders by instinct at this point.

“How did the meeting go?” she asked softly as she closed her book and allowed it to fall to the ground by their feet.

“He was asking questions again, poking where he isn’t wanted, but he truly does wish to change and work with me,” Harry sighed, closing his eyes and using the hand not around Ginny to pinch his nose, lifting his glasses off of it in the process. “He wants information and is pretty much at that point where he won’t outright demand it, just ask questions, but he isn’t giving up information without a fight, either.”

“So, basically, he’s headed in the direction we want, but it will take a while for him to get there?” Ginny summarized, and Harry nodded slowly, eyes still closed as he did so before returning his head to the back of the couch.

“Then you’ll just have to continue talking to him and pushing him, slowly, in the right direction while hoping that he’ll change on his own,” Ginny decided, using her hand to tilt Harry’s head towards her, causing his eyes to open. “Now, we’ve been so busy lately that I think it would be best if we spent some time together without all the stress of the war on us.”

Harry smiled gently as he moved his face towards hers and their lips met in a kiss. It started out slowly and sweet, but became more heated as time went on, though they still didn’t go as far as they knew their friends thought. Both of them knew and understood that the war was important, and there would be time to do things like that later; they weren’t going to let the war pressure them into doing something when it would come on its own.

Kissing Ginny, Harry felt free, and he smiled into it as he let himself go, the tension leaving him for at least a little while.

…

Sitting in his bed in the Slytherin dormitory later that night, Harry made sure his curtains were silenced before pulling out his mirror and calling out, “Marauder Manor,” to it, knowing that anyone could pick it up that way.

“Hey Harry,” Tonks said as her face appeared in the mirror, smiling as her hair turned from pink to purple to the green of his eyes and back to pink again, all in three seconds. “What’s up?”

“Is anyone else there?” Harry asked, hoping that Samuel or Amelia was at the Manor as well.

“Most of us are here,” the voice of Samuel called, and Tonks immediately moved the mirror to show Remus, Sirius, Daniella, Samuel, and Amelia were all in the living room with her. Harry wondered where Fleur was before realizing that she was probably with Bill, something he knew he would have to talk to her about soon…

“What’s up, Pup?” Sirius asked as Tonks placed the mirror on a stand that had been conjured for it before moving to sit back down in her armchair, where a book had been put down at his call.

“Dumbledore finally called me,” Harry informed them, and that caught their attention even more than his calling them did. “He wants to work with me, but he still has to learn work with others better.”

“He was asking questions without offering any information again?” Samuel guessed, and Harry nodded.

“Albus sometimes comes by the Ministry doing the same thing, especially this past summer,” Amelia sighed. “When that man learns that the world does not revolve around him, things will be so much better, but too many people put their trust and faith behind him without question, changing him in such a way that he’s grown forgetful of many things.”

“Such as the fact that not everyone follows him like faithful dogs and that asking for help works better than demanding or expecting it without question?” Harry asked innocently, and everyone snorted, even him.

“Yes, exactly like that,” Amelia agreed with a nod.

“Still, he’s trying,” Harry reported. “I could see it in how he sat and looked at me as well as his word choice. He’s truly trying to change and work with me, which means working with us.”

“You’ll let him know that going along with the Ministry rather than against it will help his cause, correct?” Remus asked with a sly smile that no one missed. Daniella hit his shoulder with lips twitching.

“Yes, Moony, I’ll be sure to mention it,” Harry replied with laughter audible in his voice. He nodded in his direction.

“How are the new ideas working out for you?” Samuel asked suddenly, and Harry blinked before a slow grin formed on his face.

“They love the idea of specializing and forming smaller groups,” he reported. “The few we spoke to alone showed interest in working in the different sized groups at the later point once the younger students get into this, probably after Christmas. Overall, it looks like this is going to go over well, though we won’t know anything for certain until we’ve had a chance to test it for about a month.”

“True, very true,” Sirius agreed as the others nodded at various speeds. “Nothing is ever certain until it’s been tested, hopefully many times.”

“Something you learned from personal experience, my dear cousin?” Tonks asked innocently, and Sirius glared even as Remus broke out laughing.

“I seem to recall many pranks gone wrong, usually backfiring on you and James,” Amelia mused, and Harry smirked even as he knew she referred to her last two years of Hogwarts, the first two of the Marauders.

“Oh, shut it,” Sirius groaned, putting his face into his hands.

…

At the end of Defense Against the Dark Arts a week later, Harry was told to stay after class by his Head of House, confusing him greatly, but he did so. As he waited for the others to leave and Professor Snape to put the classroom back to normal after their practical lesson, Harry thought about the HPs.

The specializing was going quite well. Many students found either healing or being part of an aerial attack to be more their style while others truly enjoyed the idea of using more magic or more weaponry. Some actually found using multiple weapons in any way they could fit them best. Of course, some enjoyed more than one, and the idea had been formed that one week two of the three days would be spent doing one specialty while the third was done doing another, and the week after it would swap. Ron had even found two or three others who shared his sharp mind when it came to strategies and plans and were willing to spend one or two hours a week with models of the school, thinking up ideas.

It appeared the beginning of a proper army for Hogwarts was coming along well.

“Mr. Potter,” Professor Snape said softly, and Harry looked up to see his professor looking at him from not far in front of him. “I asked you to stay behind because I wished to speak to you about the war.”

Harry’s eyes widened, and he began to pull out his wand before Professor Snape said, “I’ve already warded the room from any listeners and checked for anything that might allow others to know what we’re saying.” Nodding, Harry relaxed and returned his wand to its holster.

“I believe you know that I’m a Death Eater spy.” It wasn’t a question, and Harry didn’t bother to respond. “The Dark Lord believes I spy on the Order, and the Headmaster knows that I spy on the Death Eaters. As such, I have information from many sources, but I am also in grave danger of death if the Dark Lord ever finds out.”

Harry nodded slowly, understanding the precarious situation his Head of House was in, but he didn’t understand why the man was trying to explain this to him. He was willing to listen, however, and be told.

“I know many things, Harry,” he continued, and Harry noted the use of his given name, “including the first half of the prophecy about you.” Harry’s eyes widened in surprise as his mind began spinning, quickly coming to a conclusion he wasn’t sure how to feel about. “Yes, I am saddened to say that it was _I_ who informed the Dark Lord of the words that led him to go after your father, yourself, and _Lily_.” Harry knew from the way the man said her that that Professor Snape still loved his mother, though in what way he didn’t know, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to know.

“The day I realized who was in danger was the day I changed sides,” he sighed. “I promised the Headmaster anything if he could protect your mother, but they put their trust in that _rat_ , and your parents were gone. Still, I swore that day that I would help to protect you when the Dark Lord returned, in Lily’s memory.

“I cannot say if I have done the best job, but your being Sorted into Slytherin made me see past your face enough to see _you_ and talk to you.”

Harry nodded, remembering Professor Snape explaining this three years ago. In fact, this reminded Harry of that day in his third year quite a bit. The man in front of him was obvious scarred, broken, and only surviving for his mother’s memory and to protect him. He was a hard man, but it was because he felt that opening himself up again would only bring more pain, and Harry could understand that well. Right now, he was letting his barriers against the world fall so that Harry would understand, but it wouldn’t stay like this for long. The next time they spoke, Professor Snape would be back to the man he normally was, this side of him lightly hinted at but never revealed.

“Now, it’s time to truly fulfill my promise, time to help you the best way I can,” Professor Snape said, drawing Harry from his thoughts, and Harry met the man’s dark eyes head on with his emerald green ones. “I may not be able to help you openly, but I have information from both sides of this war, more than almost anyone else, and I’m willing to give it to you to do as you wish.”

Harry blinked in surprise before what that truly meant sunk in. Severus Snape was better informed than anyone on Dumbledore’s side of Voldemort’s actions, and he knew more than most Order members did of Dumbledore’s actions as well, meaning he would know information and could see what the Headmaster was willing to tell him and what he wasn’t.

“You’ll give me notes or memories or information?” Harry asked cautiously.

“I have many vials of memories of various meetings I feel are important as well as names and places and dates and other things that, while most have already occurred, could assist a great many people,” Professor Snape said, drawing from a robe pocket a small pouch that looked similar to the ones Harry wore on his belt. “Much of what I’m willing to offer will be in the form of notes passed on inside your assignments while others might be found in various places for you alone.”

“And what do you want from me?” Harry asked, looking at the pouch in the Slytherin’s hand for one more moment before meeting Professor Snape’s gaze once again.

“From you?” the man questioned softly. “For the Dark Lord to die, for the war to be over, even if I am not alive at the end of it. I do not wish for this war to go on longer than it must, and I also want the Dark Lord dead for good, never to return no matter how hard anyone tries. That’s all I want from you.”

Harry thought about the offer, and he realized that Severus Snape was offering all he could for nothing in return. Professor Snape might die at Voldemort’s hand for spying, and he might get into trouble with the Headmaster for aiding Harry, yet he was willing to do this to assist Harry in taking down the monster. As Harry was going to remove him anyway, it required nothing from him, and he knew his answer.

“He will die, even if it’s the last thing I do, though I hope it won’t be,” Harry stated, his voice and face hard and eyes shining with strength and determination as he looked the Death Eater spy in the eye.

Finally, Professor Snape nodded once and held out the pouch, which Harry accepted with his own nod.

Without another word, Harry left the classroom to go down to lunch, the pouch attached to his belt without thought.

…

“What did Professor Snape want?” Theo asked as Harry settled down, his mind still on the conversation he had just had. When he didn’t respond, Theo said, “Harry?”

“To tell me a few things and make an offer that no one with a brain could refuse,” Harry replied, using one finger to tap the pouch that was on his belt but under his robe. Around him, the others were surprised by his words, but he expected that.

After all, Severus Snape was an underestimated man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter has begun to show a different view of both Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape, for I feel both made terrible mistakes in the actual books, but they had good intentions behind them and even good hearts that have been terribly damaged by their pasts. Even if you do not like either man and would prefer bashing, my choice is to follow what I’ve obviously begun in this chapter, and I hope it at least gets some thinking and is done in a way that won’t turn away those who prefer the bashing of these two men.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Pansy Parkinson fought a glare as she looked around the Slytherin Common Room from her spot in a corner of the room. If she didn’t know she had to play along for her Master, she’d be sneering at the sight before her easily.

Mudbloods, blood-traitors, and students from all four Houses were in the Serpents’ Common Room. It was _disgusting_ to see, especially as so many of the Slytherins had parents who worked for the Dark Lord, yet they were still friends with those they shouldn’t be. Pansy didn’t know how much more of this horrifying scene she could take.

Around her sat Millicent Bulstrode, Vincent Crabbe, and Gregory Goyle — the only _normal_ people in the entire school, the only _smart_ people, the only people true to their cause. She could see the hidden sneers on their faces as well, and Pansy was at least relieved to see some people were still standing up for what they believed in.

Finding out her precious Draco had switched sides, had even switched his _name_ , had been terrible for Pansy, but it also made her realize that she didn’t need him. Now she was working for the Dark Lord directly, and she’d show him that leaving the Dark Lord had been a mistake.

She’d show them all.

…

Harry couldn’t believe it was already November, but here he was, playing in the first Quidditch match of the season — Slytherin vs. Gryffindor.

“Hello everyone, I’m Anthony Goldstein, and today we have an amazing match coming up,” the voice of the sixth year Ravenclaw echoed around the pitch. “Today’s match is _Slytherin_ vs. _Gryffindor_!” There were cheers from all around the stadium, and Harry saw his six teammates stand up just that much taller.

“First up we have the Gryffindor team, an almost entirely new team captained by Katie Bell,” Anthony said. “First up are Chasers Katie Bell, Demelza Robins, _aaaaand_ Ginny _Weasley_!” The three girls in crimson flew out of their side of the pitch at a fast speed, doing a quick lap around the pitch before slowing down. “Next we have our Beaters: Ritchie Coote and Jimmy Peakes! Keeper is Ron _Weasley_! And, finally, in a surprise appearance after keeping it quiet, the Seeker of the match: _Euan Abercrombie_!!!”

Harry’s head flashed up as he watched Euan tear out onto the pitch on what appeared to be a _Nimbus 2000_. Well, that certainly explained his disappearances some evenings while the rest of his year trained on their own…

“And now it’s time for our defending champions from last year: the Slytherin team!” Anthony announced. “Captained by Draco Black, we have the Chasers Draco himself, Daphne Greengrass, and Theodore Nott!” Harry watched his friends took off and raced one another around the pitch, warming up and exciting the spectators even more. “Beaters Astoria Greengrass and Graham Pritchard! Keeper Blaise Zabini, and Seeker _Har-ry Pot-ter_!!!”

Harry pushed his _Firebolt_ to maximum speed as he zoomed out into the open, doing two laps around the pitch before moving to take his position on the ground across from Euan. The Gryffindor looked at him hesitantly, so Harry gave him a grin, and Euan looked relieved before he became determined.

“The captains shake hands,” Anthony said, narrating what was happening out on the pitch, “the players take to the air, going to their positions; and the Bludgers and Snitch are released. Madam Hooch looks at both teams before she throws up the Quaffle from the ground, and they’re off! Black snags the Quaffle right from between Weasley’s hands.

“Black passes to Greengrass, who throws it upwards, Nott snags it and tears down the pitch. Now _that_ was a nasty Bludger to the arm for Nott; he lost the Quaffle, but Black snags it again before it falls too far! Nice shot by Peakes, though it looks as if the Slytherin Beaters are out for revenge now.”

Harry winced from his position above the rest of the match as Theo took the hit. Euan was looking down at the match across from Harry, and Harry saw the Gryffindor wince even as Theo moved his right arm around to be sure it was fine before taking off after Draco. He was fine, though he’d need painkillers and bruise paste after the match was over.

“Nott is back in the game as Black throws to Greengrass, who catches and throws at Weasley… He saves it! Bell in possession of the Quaffle, but a well-hit Bludger by Pritchard almost hits the Gryffindor Chaser in the face, and the Quaffle is stolen by Nott himself! Nott goes for the goalposts, and… He scores! 10-0, Slytherin.”

Harry clapped twice as the spectators cheered, though one side was quite a bit louder than the other. Suddenly, Euan was next to him, looking at Harry anxiously.

“Harry, are you okay with me…?” the twelve-year-old began hesitantly, and Harry smiled.

“If you’re enjoying the game and having fun, who am I to complain?” Harry told him. “You deserve to let go and have fun just as much as the rest of us, Euan. Just remember, I’m not going to go easy on you just because you’re my friend!”

As Harry tore off across the field to search for the Snitch, he heard Euan laughing behind him, both in relief and amusement, Harry thought.

“And Potter tears off across the field after he and Abercrombie have a discussion,” Anthony announces. “I wonder what that was about… Weasley in possession of the Quaffle, and she passes it to Robins, who tears halfway down the field, reverse pass to Bell just as a Bludger shot by Greengrass hits Robins in the arm! That’s gotta hurt!”

Harry shook his head as he watched Demelza for a few moments. Her arm wasn’t just bruised… That Bludger had forced her arm out of its socket, and the arm was just hanging by Demelza’s side. He hoped Katie would notice, and…

“And time out on the Gryffindor side!” Anthony announced as Madam Hooch blew her whistle. “It appears that Bludger dislocated Demelza Robins’ shoulder. Weasley and Bell are assisting her to the ground so that Madam Pomfrey can take a look at it. The rest of the players are flying down as well.”

Harry stood amongst his team, all of them purposely keeping their backs to the Gryffindors so that they wouldn’t get distracted.

“We’re doing well,” Draco stated, “but their line-up is better than we were expecting after losing all but two of their players last year. We’ll have to step up our level of play. Astoria, Graham, try aiming for Peakes and Coote just as much as you do the Chasers; Harry will keep control of Euan. Daphne, Theo, let’s start using some of those moves we came up with over the summer rather than just the ones we’ve used before. Blaise, just keep defending our goals, and Harry, get the bloody Snitch _sometime_ in the future.”

Harry smirked in amusement at Draco’s exasperated tone. It appeared his friend had noted that the Seeker wasn’t really looking for the Snitch all that hard, paying more attention to the match than his job.

“Fine, but I’m in the mood to break up some Chaser formations,” Harry informed the blonde, and Draco just sighed as he nodded.

“Ow,” Theo hissed under his breath, and the rest of the team turned to see him gripping his right arm protectively. When he felt their gazes on him, he looked up and said, “It’s fine, just stinging a bit.”

“Show us,” Harry ordered, knowing that it could be a lot worse and they’d be in huge trouble with many people if they didn’t check it out now. Theo gave Harry a hard look, but Harry stood his ground, even moving forward to move the Quidditch robes himself while glancing in the direction of the Slytherin section, knowing Tracey was there and watching. Catching the way Harry’s eyes moved, Theo gave in and let Harry slowly and carefully remove the sleeve of his robes with his wand.

“Theo, you should have made Draco call a time-out for this!” Harry stated angrily as he looked at the bloody and bruised arm in front of him. The Bludger had hit at a bad angle as Theo had been turning, and with the Quaffle underneath his arm to provide something hard for his arm to hit, his arm had fractured and been cut open.

“You _idiot_ ,” Draco hissed as the rest of the team took a look, all wincing at the sight. “You can’t play with _this_! You shouldn’t have even _tried_ , Theo! If you continue, you’ll only hurt yourself more, and we’ll _all_ be in trouble. I’m making you sit the rest of the match out.”

“You need three people for most of our moves,” Theo reminded Draco, his breath in little more than hisses.

“And we’d rather lose than see you get hurt even more,” Graham said with a glare while Harry looked on. “The whole team says you’re done for the day, so you’re done.”

“Who’s going to take my place?” Theo demanded, and Harry knew he thought that he had made the winning point, but Harry knew better. Draco turned and gestured to Maya in the front row of the Slytherin section of the stands, and she looked worried and confused as she hurried out of the stands to join them.

“What’s — oh,” she said, her question halted in its tracks at the sight of Theo. “You need me to play?”

“If you could, Maya,” Draco sighed. “I know you don’t really like to play much, but you know our moves and helped us come up with others.”

“And I’ve been playing with you lot since the beginning of the summer, even joining you in practices to help out,” Maya finished. “I’ll play, but I don’t have robes or my broom.”

“Astoria, go get her broom from the shed,” Harry said quickly, and Astoria flew off. “Graham, go get another set of your robes. We can enlarge them enough to fit Maya for the rest of the game.” Graham nodded before running through the doorway behind them to go get some of his robes.

“Is something the matter?” Madam Hooch asked as she walked over to the Slytherin team. It appeared their sudden actions had earned them attention from those watching even with the activity going on around the Gryffindor team.

“Theo can’t play, Madam Hooch, so we’re getting a substitute for the rest of the match,” Draco said, moving so the referee could see Theo’s arm. “Could you get Madam Pomfrey to come over here after she finishes with Demelza? He needs to have this looked at.”

“Of course,” Madam Hooch declared. “Mr. Nott, you should have had a time-out called the moment you realized you were hurt beyond a bruise! Now, am I right to guess that Ms. Pritchard is replacing Mr. Nott for the rest of the match?”

“Yes, she is,” Daphne agreed as Astoria suddenly landed at the edge of the group and handed Maya her broom. A few moments later, Graham appeared with a spare set of robes, which Harry took and began charming so that they’d fit Maya.

“It appears you have it well in hand here, so I’ll go let Madam Pomfrey know she has another patient to take care of,” Madam Hooch decided. “When you’re ready, let me know, and I’ll restart the game.”

“Thanks, Madam Hooch,” Draco called after her before turning to his team. “Maya, just go into the corridor behind the door and change into the robes. Daphne and I will decide what moves to use and let you know when we’re done.” Maya nodded and disappeared behind the door.

“For the rest of you lot, it’s the same as before,” Draco stated. “Now, Daphne, do you think we should…?”

Harry tuned out the Chaser talk except for the few times he was drawn into it so that Draco could inform him of the hand signals that would be used for the moves that required his assistance. The time-out lasted ten minutes, Demelza getting as healed as the rules allowed and Theo left sitting on the Slytherin bench with the healer working on his arm while he watched the rest of the match.

“And the teams are back in the air, but what’s this?” Anthony called out. “It appears there’s been a change in the Slytherin line-up. Theodore Nott has been forced to sit out by his captain due to an arm injury, and Maya Pritchard has taken his place as the third Chaser! Well, that was the whistle, everyone is in position, and the Quaffle is thrown back into play!

“Maya Pritchard gets the Quaffle first, and she tears down the pitch! Both Bludgers are launched her way, but her brother Graham shoots one of the Bludgers back at Peakes while Miss Pritchard dodges the second, using the movement to toss the Quaffle to Greengrass. The two girls and Black are racing down field, moving around one another, the Beaters keep careful control of the Bludgers.

“What’s this? They’ve broken apart and have scattered around the pitch! What sort of move is this?” Harry smirked as he recognized one of Maya’s moves, created for a distraction, and he flew to where he knew he had to be. “Potter’s in the middle of things, now. I wonder what he’s doing there…”

Suddenly, the Quaffle came flying out of nowhere towards Harry, who moved his _Firebolt_ so that the bottom was lower than the top, almost vertical, watching behind him as he timed this perfectly… Yes! Harry swung his broom up and hit the Quaffle, launching it into the air above him so that Daphne could hit it right into the goal with her own broom.

“Slytherin goal!” Anthony yelled. “With an original move that involved Potter blocking the Quaffle from the sight of Weasley before launching it so that Greengrass could hit it into the goal, Slytherin brings the score up to 20-0, Slytherin.”

With a grin and a quick pump of his fist, Harry rose high above the pitch again. The match picked up from there. Gryffindor was quick to try and regain control of the match, obviously hoping to play on Maya’s inexperience. It did get them a few opportunities to try and take the Quaffle from Maya rather than Draco or Daphne, but they had forgotten a few things: Graham was her brother, she did play Quidditch even if it wasn’t on the team, and Maya was a Slytherin.

So while Graham launched Bludgers to keep Maya as safe as he could make her, Maya helped set up moves she had helped perfect both during the summer and the school year, and she did it while appearing to only have _some_ skill in Quidditch, not as much as she really did.

As time went on, the scores on both sides went up as Blaise and Ron grew more and more tired, blocking fewer and fewer goals, the sun above them sinking out of sight as dinner approached. Everyone was looking towards Harry and Euan to finally finish the match, but they couldn’t find the Snitch, not with the sun disappearing so it was even harder to spot than normal.

Finally, as the score reached 450-410, just barely in Slytherin’s favor, Harry spotted a glint of gold in the middle of the pitch. Using a hand signal towards Draco, Harry slowly inched his way towards the Snitch while the three Slytherin Chasers used all the energy they had left to make one more formation. With a quick gesture, Harry was allowed into the middle of it, using this ruse as a way to hide his real purpose.

“You sure you see it?” Daphne asked him tiredly, determination barely in her voice anymore even though Harry knew her blue eyes were shining with it.

“It’s still in the middle, thinking Euan and I haven’t seen it,” Harry responded with only a little more energy than she. After that, no other words were needed by the four friends.

Moving together with Harry in the middle of the Chasers, they flew forward, Draco holding the Quaffle under his right arm. Astoria and Graham suddenly flew up beside their sisters, Beater bats at the ready as they flew towards the Gryffindor side of the pitch.

Just as they reached the middle of the pitch and the Snitch moved, Harry broke off from the group, diving underneath his teammates to chase after the Snitch. Euan was on the other side of the pitch and didn’t even have a chance to chase after it before Harry’s fingers closed around the tiny golden ball. Harry lifted a tired arm into the air, and the stands around him were full of cheering students.

As they all landed, the Slytherin team slapped Harry on the back tiredly, all of them just wanting to shower before finding food and then bed. The final score had been 600-410 to Slytherin, and no one could find fault with it.

Before they entered the changing rooms, however, the Gryffindor team met up with them. As congratulations were given all around, Harry pulled a disappointed Euan away from the group.

“I didn’t even _see_ the Snitch before you went after it,” the young Gryffindor said without being asked to speak. “I shouldn’t even be on the team…”

“Euan,” Harry said sharply, making him look up, “don’t say that. This was your first match, and you did well. It’s not easy finding the Snitch. Besides, if I had just gone for the Snitch without joining my teammates in that formation, you’d have noticed the Snitch and raced me for it. As you play more, you’ll learn being Seeker includes confusing and tricking the other Seeker. If I wasn’t thinking about the unofficial matches this year, I’d help you more, but not until after our teams are done facing one another, alright?”

Euan nodded with a small smile, and Harry was pleased he had cheered up his friend. The Gryffindor Seeker really had done well, aiding his own Chasers here and there to help them score on Blaise and rarely falling for Harry’s feints. It had been a good match, despite the injuries to Theo and Demelza.

After long, hot showers and fresh, clean clothes, the Slytherin team made its way to their Common Room. The entire House was there, the kitchens raided by Tracey and the other leaders of the House. Cheers were heard all around the dungeons as the Slytherins welcomed their victorious team into the party, even Theo getting an enormous round of applause for being willing to continue on despite his injury.

The party went on for hours, the team begging off after an hour to collapse into eight different beds for a much-needed sleep.

…

Harry could tell by the looks on the faces of the highest level of students that they hadn’t expected to see the Quidditch players with colored Journals at eight in the morning the day after that very long Quidditch match, but here they were, ready and waiting for them.

“Welcome, and I hope you enjoyed the Quidditch match yesterday, because you’ll find there are fifteen players who will be very upset if they find out you didn’t enjoy it,” Tracey said from beside Harry with an amused look on her face. The students laughed in amusement and assured the players that they had loved it.

“Good, but today is a new day, and it’s November,” Harry reminded them. “It’s time to choose your specializations for the rest of the year. I know many of you have two you wish to study more than any other, so we’ll let you do so. Please use your Journals as parchment and write down what you’ve chosen to study. Once that’s done, Astoria and I will be teaching you today while the rest start forming groups.”

There was quick movement as everyone quickly wrote down their decisions, taking the pieces of parchment from the Journals and banishing them to where a designated spot in the room. From there, the three hours went quite normally, everyone learning much more quickly than they had at this time last year.

After, Harry’s group of friends sat down with the lists they had compiled and began to eat the snacks brought in by Marauder Manor elves, resting for the half hour before the next group joined them.

“So we’ve got at least half who want to really work on multiple weapons, possibly learning even more if we have the chance,” Neville explained to Harry and Astoria. “Of those, three-fourths also have a second choice. A quarter of the group wishes to be in an aerial squad, though it makes sense with a good number of the Quidditch players outside the Slytherin team in that group.”

“We have seven or eight who want to learn healing,” Hannah continued, “and all of the ones we noted as good with healing spells are in the group.”

“That leaves the rest wanting to learn more Muggle or Magical fighting,” Terry finished.

“Not a bad split,” Harry decided. “Everyone will be learning the basic healing spells either way; we’ll teach them to heal cuts, mend broken bones and how to keep someone alive if they’re hurt badly. We’ll probably find more for the aerial squad in the next group and even a handful with the second and third years.”

“And the fact that so many wish to learn how to use more than just one weapon at a time?” Hermione questioned.

“Just shows how well our duels with one another have shown how useful it is,” Astoria replied with a smirk.

“It also shows they want to vary their styles so that they can adapt better and surprise the enemy,” Padma noted.

“Having different ways of doing things is always best when catching Erasers,” Luna noted in her dreamy way, and the others knew her well enough to understand what she meant. With various ways to fight, they’d have a better chance of surviving and winning.

“Come on, we’ve got the next group coming, and we’re introducing the new army ways to them today,” Natalie finally said as she stood up, her chair disappearing as she did.

…

Harry couldn’t be more proud of the students of Hogwarts as he watched their training sessions throughout the next week. The extra time spent in the Room of Requirement on their own was helping immensely, and the specialized training was making each person better and better in the field they had chosen.

As Harry watched through multiple TV-like screens with his homework ranged out on the table in front of him, he saw students of all ages learning. Some were occurring now while others had been earlier in the day and the Room was replaying the lessons for Harry to watch.

First years were being patiently taught by Graham and Natalie, slowly but surely becoming more confident with both their wands and their daggers. The second and third years were working with their swords, having just finished another magic lesson. In another area, the fourth and fifth years were being taught a few healing spells they’d all need to learn, aerial training already finished with multiple weapons next on the list.

Those in the aerial squad had their own, large room in the Room of Requirement, Ron leading them as he taught them various strategies on possible ways to use both their wands and to throw weapons at both small and large targets. Putting him in charge of that training had been a brilliant idea thought of by Luna, Ginny, and Maya three weeks before after the second aerial squad training had been done to give everyone a feel for it.

Hannah and Susan were working closely with the eight students who wanted to learn the more complex healing charms that would mend bones, heal muscles, and put a person into stasis. The girls were also teaching their group about medicinal potions, when to give a person what potion, how much should be given and why.

Neville was working hard with those who wished to learn purely magic while Astoria did the same with those who wanted to learn more Muggle fighting. He, Tracey, and Ginny were visible in the last screen, teaching many how to work with more than one weapon at once. Today had been their swords and wands, the students ordered to switch hands without a moment’s warning in the middle of fights so they could learn how to do it well and without faltering.

In the end, it was obvious that the students were learning and trying their best. They still had fun — Harry and the others saw to that — but they knew a war was going on and would be coming their way some time in the future. At least they were learning to fight so that they wouldn’t be caught unaware.

Now if only Harry could figure out why something was fighting to come to the front of his mind… Something he was forgetting, something he wasn’t thinking about…

Oh well, he would think of it eventually, and for now, he had more NEWT-level homework to do.

 


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Harry nodded once in Professor Snape’s direction as they passed in the corridor. That morning there had been an article in the paper saying that Aurors had managed to find and stop a raid before anyone was killed the night before, though some buildings were burned down and a few Muggles were in the hospital. It had been Professor Snape’s tip to Harry that had allowed Amelia and Samuel to deploy their forces exactly when they needed to, making it look as if someone had set off an alarm rather than betrayed Voldemort.

Then Harry remembered where he was headed on this Friday morning during his break because it was time for Arithmancy and why he was headed there. He had been slipped a note that morning, most likely by magic, which requested his presence in the Headmaster’s office after breakfast. Harry wasn’t sure what to expect, but he was sure it would either amuse or annoy him. Still, he was going because he knew he had to work on the Headmaster and try to change his ways.

“Acid pops,” Harry told the gargoyle outside the Headmaster’s office, and soon he was opening the door after the Headmaster’s “Enter.”

“Ah, Harry, thank you for coming,” Professor Dumbledore said as Harry took a seat. “Lemon drop?” Harry shook his head, wondering where this was going to go; it had been a month since they had last spoken.

“Harry, you had some very good points last time we spoke,” Professor Dumbledore said with a sigh. “Your unwillingness to share anything until I am willing to speak is quite realistic, so I believe it is time I tell you about something you need to know.” Harry sat up straight, wondering what this was about.

“For many years I have been collecting memories about one Tom Marvolo Riddle, and I have come to an unfortunate conclusion, only furthered that day at the end of your second year when you brought me his diary.” Harry sank back down into his seat, realizing where this was headed, but at least the Headmaster was telling him rather than keeping it to himself.

“What do you know about Horcruxes, Harry?” Professor Dumbledore asked, and Harry knew that the man expected him to ask what they were, but Harry knew perfectly well what they were.

“Pieces of the soul, ripped from the body and placed into objects to keep one attached to this world,” Harry said softly, his voice heavy as he spoke of such darkness. “To have just one means you cannot leave this world until it is destroyed, and to have more does the same with more assurance, but it turns you into a monster, takes away your humanity, even more than murder does. It takes murder to create one, and it’s how Lord Voldemort is still alive.”

Professor Dumbledore was staring at Harry in complete shock, his eyes without their twinkle and slightly wide, his face very pale, and Harry knew he had completely amazed the famous wizard before him.

“Tom Riddle created six Horcruxes, leaving the seventh piece of his soul in his own body,” Harry continued. “I destroyed the diary, and that’s how we found out.” Professor Dumbledore sat up straighter in his seat, his eyes piercing. “I lived with Samuel Davis, who is close friends with Daniel Greengrass. While neither will ever follow Lord Voldemort, they’ve both studied the Dark Arts to understand them and learn how to fight them. Samuel recognized the possibility of the diary being a Horcrux, and Daniel confirmed it after hearing my story again. This was the summer after my second year.”

“Have you found any?” Professor Dumbledore asked, and Harry contemplated how to answer this. He decided to tell the truth without telling the truth, stretching it at one point.

“Me? No, I haven’t after the diary,” Harry replied. “Samuel is an Auror with a job, and Daniel has been busy with the Wizengamot and his family money as well as keeping his family safe and alive without joining Voldemort. They’ve had no time to search.”

“Very well,” Professor Dumbledore sighed, sitting back in his seat. “I have found many memories about Tom Riddle that hint at possible Horcruxes. He liked to collect trophies in his youth, and I believe he has done the same thing here. Would you be willing to watch a few memories with me, Harry, and return during your break and after dinner to watch the rest?”

Harry had a feeling this would be what they needed to find the final Horcrux, so he agreed, and he was soon shown many memories about Tom Marvolo Riddle.

…

“So we’re looking for Hufflepuff’s Cup?” Sirius asked in disbelief and shock after Harry finished detailing what he had learned from the memories shown to him throughout the day. Harry was in his dorm, the room silenced and locked up tight, all of his friends sitting around the room in as much shock as those at Marauder Manor.

“Yes, Sirius, and it’s basically been confirmed because Slytherin’s Locket was also a Horcrux, and he stole it at the same time as the Cup,” Harry sighed.

“Where could it be, though?” Hermione asked as everyone came back to themselves and started thinking. “There are so many possibilities for where he could hide it…”

“But there’s a pattern,” Luna said dreamily, “a pattern in where they’ve been hidden.”

“She has a point,” Astoria said slowly as most turned to look at her in confusion. “The Gaunt house, Hogwarts, with himself, the cave where he once took two children to scare them, and with a follower.”

“Who’s to say he hasn’t hidden the last with another follower?” Neville questioned out of the blue. “I mean, he trusts Bellatrix Lestrange like no one else, and I can see him trusting her with this as long as she has no idea what it is…”

“That’s a very real possibility,” Remus told Neville, who smiled slightly.

“The problem is we don’t know where she might have hidden it or how to get it,” Samuel sighed, rubbing his face.

Harry, on the other hand, was thinking very carefully about what Luna and Astoria had said. _Hogwarts: his school and the one place he felt was home. The Gaunt house: his family’s home and a place by where he killed the Muggle roots in his family. With himself: the only place he’d ever_ truly _trust something to be. The cave: a reminder of what he had once done, where he had begun to feel powerful with his magic and in torturing others. With Lucius Malfoy: a loyal follower who would do anything for him, a place he could check on with ease and know his Horcrux would be safe as Lucius would know that to lose it would be instant death._

And Harry thought of one more place that could mean something to Lord Voldemort, a Muggle-raised Half-blood who had nothing from the magical half of his family, who had had to earn everything for himself. _Gringotts: a place he could never enter, a place that showed you truly belonged in the Wizarding World, a place that has only been broken into once and it was by Lord Voldemort himself._ If he gave it to Bellatrix Lestrange, that’s where the Cup would be.

“Harry has sent the Wrackspurts away from himself,” Luna commented. Harry hadn’t even noticed the conversation about where the Cup could be as he thought to himself.

“Harry?” a few people asked, and Harry looked around before sighing.

“I know where the Cup is,” he told the group, and there was a moment of shock before everyone began asking him questions at once.

“ _Shut it_!” Ginny yelled, and everyone fell silent.

“Thanks, Gin,” Harry said gratefully, and she nodded. “If he truly gave it to Bellatrix, and I believe he did, there’s one place to hide it that would be impossible to get it from without Bellatrix. It has meaning to him because he was Muggle-raised and had nothing from his mother’s side of the family.” He paused, waiting to see if anyone else followed, but only one other did: Ginny. Their eyes locked as understanding passed through them, the two who knew Tom Riddle best.

“Gringotts,” they whispered together, eyes still gazing into the others.

“Gringotts?” the others asked in confusion, and that broke their staring contest as they turned to face everyone else.

“To Tom, having a vault at Gringotts meant you belonged in the Wizarding World, and he didn’t have one while he was at Hogwarts,” Ginny explained. “Not having a key there… it made him envious of those who did.”

“And he trusted Bellatrix and her husband during the first war,” Remus added softly. “It makes sense that it’s in there, but how are we going to get it? The only person to have broken into Gringotts and escaped it successfully is Voldemort himself, and he didn’t even steal anything.”

There was silence on both sides of the mirrors as everyone thought about how to make this happen. Harry had no ideas because anyone trying to break into Gringotts was an idiot just _asking_ to be killed by goblins. No one had a chance of doing it, not even if they had a good reason to.

“Kreacher!” Sirius suddenly called, and everyone in the Slytherin dorm turned to face the mirror as the house-elf appeared before Sirius.

“Master called Kreacher?” the elf asked, bowing slightly before looking up at Sirius.

“Kreacher, does Bellatrix still use the vault she was given as a child for her allowance?” Sirius asked, and Kreacher thought for a moment, perhaps even using his magic, before nodding. “Can you still get into her vault and take things from it without the goblins knowing who took something?”

“Yes, Master,” Kreacher replied almost instantly, as if Sirius didn’t even have to ask.

“Then, Kreacher, I have something we need you to retrieve for us…” Harry said to the mirror, and Kreacher turned around to face it.

…

Harry stood in the Room of Requirement in a room off the normal HP training room, and it looked completely bare except for the usual flat rock in the middle of the room. It had taken him quite a bit of convincing and lying to get away with Hufflepuff’s Cup to destroy it alone rather than in the dorm room with everyone watching. Only two people knew about either of the Founders’ weapons, and he wanted it to stay that way until forced to reveal them; everyone in the group had at least one secret that was their own.

Still, he stood here now, velvet bag brought to him by Kreacher held in his left hand, ready to destroy the final Horcrux. Taking the golden cup from the bag, Harry carefully placed it on the stone before him and took out the Dagger from its sheathe on his left arm. Ankh’s head poked out of his home on Harry’s shoulder to watch.

Stepping closer, Harry raised Slytherin’s Dagger with both hands, knowing he’d need the force behind it, and lunged downwards just as the Cup began to react to the Dagger’s presence and resist. With a horrible scream and a crack down the side, Helga Hufflepuff’s Cup was destroyed, the piece of Voldemort’s soul gone for good.

Six down, no more to go.

…

“I still can’t believe that’s it,” Astoria said softly, and Harry knew exactly what she meant as the two of them, Tracey, Ginny, and Daphne sat behind a Privacy Charm in the Den. The five of them had been the only teens to know of the Horcruxes for so long, and now they were all finally gone, leaving Voldemort mortal and vulnerable.

“The next time you see him, you’ll be able to kill him,” Ginny told Harry, and he nodded.

“For now, we’ve done all we can to weaken him,” Daphne decided. “All we can do now is train and prepare ourselves for battle, prepare the entire school.”

“If we’re lucky, it won’t come to that,” Tracey whispered, but Harry knew they all felt it. Somehow, all of the students knew that Hogwarts was where it was all going to end. The castle would be attacked, they would fight for their lives and the school, and the war would be won or lost at this very place, sometime in the near future.

“I don’t think we’re going to be that lucky,” Harry sighed.

…

Sirius Black wanted to punch someone, and hopefully that someone was one Remus Lupin.

The only one of his school friends still alive was being a complete _idiot_ , and it was all because of his furry little problem. Seriously — no pun intended — even Sirius knew that his being a werewolf wasn’t a problem in this case, yet Moony _still_ wouldn’t listen to reason!

Growling in frustration, Sirius marched into the study where he knew Remus was reading the handful of laws Harry and the other boys had managed to work on despite all of their homework, training, research for a few projects, and Quidditch. Really, it was their sixth year so they had a pile of homework, they spent hours every week training their fellow students, and he knew Draco had at least two practices a week to keep them in shape for the unofficial Quidditch tournament that was to start this weekend as it was the first weekend of December.

Closing the door behind him, Sirius sat angrily in the seat opposite Moony, waiting for him to finish so he could verbally attack the werewolf, a Silencing Charm already on the study. Finally, Moony finished with the parchment and placed it down onto the desk carefully, looking up to meet Sirius’ furious gray eyes.

“What’s wrong, Sirius?” he had the gall to ask, and it set Sirius off.

“You are, Moony, you are!” Sirius yelled, standing up. “Just because you are a werewolf gives you _no bloody excuse_ to treat my cousin like you have been! She _does — not — care._ Your furry little problem and the age difference mean nothing to her _or_ her family. You make her happy, so they’re happy for her. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and think of _her_ instead. She’s being patient, but it hurts her a little each time you push her away, so _stop pushing her away_!”

Sirius sat back down, panting from all his yelling, and he saw Remus was completely shell-shocked. If this hadn’t been such a serious topic, Sirius might have laughed, but the happiness of his family, both through blood and through friendship, wasn’t something he took lightly.

“You — you’re telling me you want me to _date_ your _younger cousin_?” Remus finally managed to get out.

“If it makes both of you happy, then yes, I am,” Sirius replied, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned back in his chair. “So, get off your arse, find some nice clothes, and take her out for dinner tonight in the Muggle world.”

Remus was in complete shock as Sirius helped him stand and get into his room. Finally, however, he began to protest and fight back, but Sirius had been expecting it and just rolled his eyes as he repeated what he had said before over and over in different ways.

“What if I hurt her?” Remus asked softly, his eyes downcast.

“Then you’ll be dealing with a great number of people who will want revenge, but you’ll only hurt her by pushing her away,” Sirius told him. “Moony won’t hurt Tonks, and she’s not afraid of that side of you. Accept this and accept her, Remus.”

Finally, _finally_ , Sirius appeared to be getting through, and Remus began to get ready. Once Remus was in the shower with clothes picked out and laying on his bed, Sirius left, thinking that his job was done. He had finally forced those two together after months of them dancing around one another, annoying them all.

…

Fleur sat down at the small table in Bill’s flat as he cooked them both dinner, actually using French recipes he had asked her mother for. Fleur truly loved Bill, just as she knew he loved her, but things were getting difficult between them at times.

Since joining Harry’s group the summer after she finished Beauxbatons, Fleur had been slowly spending more and more time at Marauder Manor. The people Harry knew and worked with, even at only sixteen, had amazing connections and were great people with good and fun personalities. Fleur enjoyed spending time with all of them, and she was doing so more and more often lately.

Unfortunately, this took away from her time with Bill. She knew that he wished to get married, could see it in the way he acted around her, and she wanted to as well. With the way they had been together less and less, however, Fleur knew he was worried and had postponed asking her by a long period, perhaps even a year.

This problem wasn’t one-sided, however. While Fleur had been pulling away towards Marauder Manor and its occupants, Bill had been drawn more and more into Order business, working long hours and finding it hard to see her as often. Between them, it was a miracle to see one another beyond lunches and sometimes at night here and there, mostly because Bill’s Order work was done at night.

Of course, this brought Fleur’s thoughts back to a conversation she had had recently… Harry had called while she was at the Manor and had asked to speak to her alone, so she had gone to her bedroom and warded it while he had made sure to ward his dorm room. From there, they had had one interesting conversation about her relationship and feelings for Bill, most likely brought on by the few times she had actually seen him lately. After admitting that she loved him and didn’t see him enough, Fleur had asked a question.

“ _’Arry, can I tell Bill the truth about what I am doing?_ ” she had asked.

“ _Why are you even asking me, Fleur_?” Harry had replied after they sat in silence for a little while.

“ _Because, ‘Arry, even we adults know who is ze leader of our side of ze war, despite ‘aving Amelia as Minister and Samuel as Director of ze Magical Law Enforcement, and that is you, ‘Arry_ ,” she had told him, and he had fallen quiet again, his face pensive for a bit.

“ _Will he keep it to himself_?” Harry had finally asked.

“ _For me? ‘E would do anyzing I asked, even swearing on ‘is magic never to tell wizout permission, all before I even tell ‘im_ ,” Fleur had said honestly, and Harry had nodded to himself.

“ _If he promises not to tell, you can tell him, but make sure it’s somewhere private,_ ” Harry had finally decided. “ _It wouldn’t really hurt to have another Order member in our group, especially one so powerful and connected. Just make sure not to mention anything about the Hogwarts Protectors or our training around him, and don’t show him the basement if he goes to Marauder Manor._ ”

Fleur had been so grateful that she wouldn’t have to hide this from Bill any longer if she felt she had to tell. It had taken a weight off her shoulders, and she knew the time to tell him would be tonight. There was just something in the tension between them that told her this was so.

“Fleur,” Bill said softly, and she looked up at him with a smile as she brought them their dinners, but her smile faded as she saw the look on his face. “I really don’t want to have to ask this, but things have been so different the past year… do you still love me?”

His question and the voice he asked it in, so hesitant and worried, made Fleur so very upset. This just proved that it was time to tell him, time to let him in on the secret.

“Oui, William, I do love you,” she replied. “I know I ‘ave been distant lately, but it ‘as nothing to do wiz you and our love. I ‘ave been wiz friends, ‘elping zem lately.”

“Do I know your friends?” Bill asked slowly, and Fleur knew he was worried, but she ate a bite of her meal before replying.

“Some you know, some you do not,” she told him. “Some you ‘ave never met, but you ‘ave most certainly ‘eard of. Many of my friends would surprise you.”

“Can I meet them?” Bill questioned, and Fleur smiled gently.

“Bill, before you can meet zem, zere is much I must tell you,” she said softly. “Unfortunately, my friends wish to ‘ave this very secret, which means you must swear on your magic never to tell.”

“On my magic, Fleur?” Bill gasped. “Is it really that serious?”

“Oui, William,” Fleur sighed. “It is very serious, and I can say no more wizout it, but I can say zat it is not a dangerous secret, just one zey want getting out in no way. In fact, if people knew zis secret, many zings going on would be ruined while others would be meddled in, and ze war would turn in Voldemort’s direction rather zan ours. So zis is only dangerous in ze wrong ‘ands, not because it can ‘urt people.”

Bill nodded slightly as he thought, and Fleur let him think. To swear on one’s magic to never tell anyone about something was a very large thing, never to be taken lightly. So Fleur ate her dinner while watching her lover make his choice, knowing he would make the right one with her assurances that the secret itself wasn’t dangerous.

And she was right. Just after they had finished eating, Bill took out his wand and swore to tell no one of the secret without Fleur’s permission, and Fleur would only give permission if the others told her to except in an emergency. Fleur trusted Bill not to tell anyone, especially Dumbledore, but she could understand why the others weren’t as sure, even his younger siblings. Not only did Ron and Ginny not know him as well as they knew Percy and the twins, but Bill was quite obviously on Dumbledore’s side, and he and Voldemort were the last two people on Earth they wanted hearing about this.

When she was done telling her story, Bill and she were on the couch in his living room, both with wine in hand, Bill having consumed most of the bottle. Still, despite his shock, Fleur could see his understanding, forgiveness, pride, and love at all she had done and why. She could also see that he would help them, even if she did admit that there was quite a bit she had been asked not to tell him but he would find out eventually.

Finally knowing and understanding why things were so hard on their relationship, especially Fleur working for two different groups against Voldemort despite their different ways, allowed Bill to finally do something Fleur had been waiting for for a year now.

William Weasley knelt down on one knee, showed her an engagement ring, and asked her to marry him that summer if they could pull it off with help from their mothers. Fleur smiled and accepted immediately, kissing him deeply before allowing him to put the ring on her hand.

Neither of them got much sleep that night.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for Kreacher retrieving Hufflepuff’s Cup goes to sbmcneil/potterfan2008 (depending on which site, ff.net or SIYE) from her story Unintended Consequences. She gave me permission to use the idea when I was still working on the second story and had no idea how to destroy this particular Horcrux. Reading her story was almost a miracle.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

November had passed too quickly, in Harry’s opinion. It was already the first week of December, and Hufflepuff had lost to Gryffindor in their first unofficial Quidditch match of the year, though only by the one-hundred-and-fifty points gained from catching the Snitch because they had kept the score even until then. Before that, at the end of November, Hufflepuff had beaten Ravenclaw in their official Quidditch match.

Of course, homework was a huge problem that was driving all the students crazy, especially the upper three years. The fifth and seventh years spent hours each week doing homework, and the only reason they could train at all was because they were getting help from one another to get it done as quickly as possible. Harry and his fellow sixth years weren’t being worked as hard as those with OWLs and NEWTs, but compared to the youngest four years, they were being piled with a mountain-load of homework.

Outside of Hogwarts, the war was still going strong. Amelia and Samuel were putting all they had into the Ministry and getting the Aurors ready for their battles. They had Aurors raiding manors and homes of known Death Eaters, capturing the homes and enchanting them so that Voldemort couldn’t use them himself, even if it meant the Ministry couldn’t use them either. Professor Snape’s knowledge was also being put to good use as at least half of the Death Eater attacks were being stopped before they could truly start, even if a few did die in each one. It was a massive improvement from when Fudge was in power, but the Wizarding World was still a dark place to be at the moment.

At the castle in Scotland, however, things were going quite well. All of the students but the first years were specializing in something while also learning what they would need to survive in a fight. Strategists were found and recruited to work with Ron, many times using Marauders Maps that Harry, Ginny, and Tracey had made for them in varying sizes and sometimes using the model castle that had been used to test Ron earlier in the year.

Those in the aerial squad were getting quite good with hitting targets with Stinging Hexes from various heights on their brooms, and they were doing well with throwing projectiles with either magic or their own arms. The best fliers in the school were in that group except for those with colored Journals, and it showed in how well they could dodge attacks that the Room of Requirement sent at them while still completing their assignment for that practice. Ron, Harry, and the others were even thinking about asking the Room to bring out a giant so that the squad could figure out the best ways to take one down, knowing that Voldemort had them as allies and wouldn’t hesitate to use giants.

The healers of the group were learning what they had to very well. Susan, Hannah, and Justin reported that they could now actually brew potions they had never been able to brew before because of more careful and kind guidance, and the healers’ Potions grades were reflecting this change outside of training. They were also using the various spells for healing as if they had been practicing their entire lives. Dummies with broken bones, terrible cuts, hexes, curses, and more were being healed as if the injuries were nothing.

Harry was personally quite proud of how well those learning multiple weapons were doing. From using wands and swords in either hand without trouble, they had moved onto two swords. That had taken them a while to grasp properly, which was understandable, but by the third week of November, they had learned enough to practice on their own, and oh did they practice. A week later, right at the end of November, most of the group was fighting with two swords so well that he, Tracey, and Ginny agreed to move on as long as they continued practicing on their own. Now, they were learning the tricks behind using both a sword and dagger interchangeably, which was difficult in many ways because of the very different sizes of the blades.

Neville had taken to teaching higher level magic once the basic fighting magic was mastered, and the number of spells those who preferred using magic to fight with knew was growing every lesson. Astoria, on the other hand, was enjoying getting to show off the moves that were very subtle with a blade or even in hand-to-hand, making a large difference that most wouldn’t notice until it was used. She was even beginning to teach her students how to throw knives and even their own daggers.

All of it was impressive to see, and Harry loved to just sit in that special room of the Room of Requirement to watch training sessions while doing his homework. They only had another two weeks before Christmas break and then three weeks off before they were back, and the students were learning well.

…

Harry dodged Astoria’s blade, but he could feel the wind blowing by him, showing just how close that had been. His teeth gritted together in concentration and determination, Harry blocked her next swing on the middle of his blade and slid his own sword so that the handle moved towards her. Sooner than she obviously expected, Astoria was cut deeply, and blood suddenly appeared around what was now a blood-covered invisible dagger, stuck to the handle of his sword.

Hissing, Astoria backed away quickly, her left hand moving to cover the wound, coating her dagger and hand in blood. Harry backed away as well, shaking the blood from the dagger and moving the second dagger in his left hand around in a circle between his fingers. He could be patient, waiting to see what she would do to make up for this.

Around the battling pair was a shield that blocked everything else out, including the voices of Astoria’s students, who were watching the fight to get a new take on ways to use blades in a fight. This was obviously a great opportunity for them as they were getting to watch some very Slytherin tactics being used on both sides.

Wincing from her pain, Astoria switched hands before moving forward quickly, and Harry let her come. Moments before she could hit him, Harry finally stopped spinning his second dagger around, the blade pointed parallel to his arm rather than towards Astoria. He then moved forward and blocked both her sword and dagger with his own sword, his left arm reaching towards her in a flash and leaving another cut on her right arm.

Both of them jumped away, circling and looking for weakness in the other. Harry could tell that the wounds and blood-loss were getting to Astoria, her right arm hanging more than it normally did and her blue eyes beginning to glaze over. He would have to end this before she hurt herself even more, and he knew she would if not stopped.

Running forward, Harry used the invisible dagger to catch her sword as she went to block and his second dagger to fling hers from her hand, the tip of her sword landing on her neck. They both then stood there, panting and Astoria losing blood.

“Yield,” Harry told her softly, “you’re losing blood fast. If you continue, you’re going to hurt yourself, Astoria.”

He saw some of the fog in her eyes disappear for a moment in determination and fury before the state of her body reached her mind and she slumped down slightly, sword falling from her hand. Harry dropped his own weapons to catch her before she fell, pulling out his wand to begin healing her.

The shields around them fell, and some of those in Astoria’s class who were in the healing classes rushed over to them and quickly healed Astoria’s wounds, leaving no scars behind. Harry didn’t mind giving them control as he knew the most important healing spells, but his would have still left a scar behind with wounds that bad.

Once Astoria had taken a blood-restorative potion and was standing next to Harry in front of the group, she asked one question: “What did you learn?”

From there, an entire conversation was born. Her students had a great number of comments on his using the hidden dagger without anyone even knowing it was there, and many were asking him how he had managed to make her yield with a single move. Others had seen moves that were new to them and asked them both to demonstrate so they could learn the moves. In the end, the duel between Harry and Astoria really helped her students realize how much using not only multiple weapons but also multiple blades could really turn the tide in a fight, especially if you use unexpected weapons. It had been a good lesson.

…

Graham flew in among the aerial squad, Natalie flying somewhere else in the room. The two of them were watching what the squad was doing and acting as extra attacks the fliers had to dodge, so it was a lot of fun for the pair to randomly shoot towards people. Still, he and Natalie, the few times they pulled away from the group, were impressed with what Ron had succeeded in doing.

Below them was a giant with a large club and even a few boulders, trying to get rid of those on brooms who were nothing more than flies to it. The students had some of Fred and George’s explosives as well at their wands, and they were making plans with Ron before going in on the attack. This was the third giant in twenty minutes, and each one was being taken out with a different tactic.

Suddenly, the group broke apart and flew in different directions. At a sharp whistle that wouldn’t be heard by Death Eaters below in a real fight, half of the fighters aimed Cutting Curses at the giant’s eyes, making it bellow in pain, which allowed the other half to throw their explosives into its mouth. Everyone flew away quickly just before it exploded and disappeared from the room.

Graham and Natalie shared looks from across the room, and he could see that she was also smiling and nodding. They were doing well.

…

Tracey watched those learning how to use multiple weapons carefully. Today was a day to review before moving on again. Everyone had kept up well with their wand-and-sword combination, and it was obvious most had improved with two swords. Now they were using the newest style of sword-and-dagger, and Tracey had to admit that they were doing well.

“Switch!” she called over the noise of metal clashing against metal, and in moments, the students had changed which hand had which weapon without fail, not losing their places in the various training battles going on around the room.

These students had learned early on in their lessons with the very different weapons that they had to learn excellent speed, footwork, maneuverability, and adaption for their fights. Watching them now, Tracey could see that they had learned those lessons well. Daggers were being used as shields just as much as the swords were, and some were even copying Harry’s use of a second dagger by attaching it to the handle of their swords, though she noted many did not as they had most likely tried it and got hurt when they forgot the second blade.

Teenagers ranging from ages twelve to eighteen ducked under swinging swords, jumped back from attacks, blocked or deflected both daggers and swords, and used anything they could to their advantage. Many of the youngest were partnered with the oldest, not to give the oldest an easier time, but to give both sides a tougher fight. The youngest could move on their feet better, but the oldest had more strength and height on them, which gave both sides quite the workout.

In the end, the battles were going well, and there wasn’t much for Tracey to do besides order the students to switch hands at very random times, sometimes purposely choosing when many people were attacking.

…

Neville watched as Padma and Terry showed the group of students that were usually taught by him a spell that would allow them to take any sort of ground and change it so that the environment had sharp rocks popping up all over the place, creating a great dueling field. He knew that he could have taught the students this, but sometimes he asked his friends to teach a lesson so he could observe those he taught from the back of the room in the shadows.

If Harry had asked him to teach like this back in their first or second year, Neville would have balked at the idea and run away to hide. However, years of training with his friends had changed Neville, and he was a very different person from that young, slightly chubby, clumsy, nervous, forgetful boy who first came to Hogwarts with Trevor the toad running away all the time. Now Neville Longbottom was someone he could be proud of, someone his grandmother could be proud of, someone his _parents_ could be proud of.

His students, the ones who preferred to learn magic more than anything, had learned a large repertoire of spells for battle that ranged from Charms to Transfiguration and from Offensive to Defensive. They had been taught various ways to use even the simplest of spells like _Wingardium Leviosa_. Some of his students were so creative that they taught him new ways to use the spells he taught them, and he, in turned, passed them on to the others.

It was an amazing experience for Neville, and he wouldn’t give it up for anything, not as he watched those he had helped grow just as Harry and the others had helped _him_ grow all those years ago.

…

Hannah was watching two different things as she observed the healing lessons that afternoon, just a week before Christmas break was upon them. The first was how the students of herself, Susan, and Justin were coming along. The second, on the other hand, was actually the interaction of her two closest friends.

She had come to the conclusion many months ago, perhaps even before that, that her two best friends had a good chance of dating in the future. If not for the war and all the training they went through and just that shyness they both had at times, they would most likely have already begun dating, but it wasn’t so.

Susan could be stubborn and fierce and determined and focused at times, and she even admitted it, but she was also kind and loyal and funny and had a softer side. When around Justin, Susan’s softer side came out more often than it did around anyone else, except perhaps Hannah herself. He just had a way of calming her when they were together, and it had always stood out to Hannah, even as her friends denied it because they didn’t see it.

Justin was a lot shyer than Susan most of the time, though he was quite determined and willing to work at what he wanted, but it took Susan to bring that side out of him at times. He was a different person when around her.

Hannah liked that her friends were so close, and she hoped they would do something about it soon. Watching them together like she was today could get annoying because they would glance at each other here and there, sometimes brushing against one another when they were close enough to do so. Some of the other students, either the Hufflepuffs or more perceptive ones, saw this as well and sometimes commented on it to Hannah when they weren’t around; she could only smile slightly and agree while trying to hide her impatience from them.

Right now they were teaching ways to mix certain potions together so that fewer vials had to be carried around or so that a patient who was barely holding onto consciousness wouldn’t have to drink more than a single dose. Justin was walking around the room to see how the students were doing as they learned from and mimicked Susan’s actions. Hannah was supposed to be watching the overall class to be sure there were no mistakes that Justin didn’t catch in time — a real threat when it came to potions — so she knew that she had to get back to it.

The healers were learning well, and her friends were still just as annoying as ever when it came to the other.

…

“Well, you lot, tomorrow the Hogwarts Express is leaving for home,” Harry announced to the students that were sitting all over the Den, the door charmed to only allow those with Journals in at this time. “It’s Christmas, and we want you to enjoy the holidays, but we have to make sure you remember some things.” There were quiet mutters around the room, most of them of a darker tone, and Harry knew they understood.

“For the past four months we’ve been in this castle, safe and hidden from the war except through mail,” Harry continued, silencing the group. “Outside these grounds, Death Eaters are raiding towns almost nightly, and there’s a good chance your homes will be attacked. Danger lies where we’re going, and it’s best to remember that. Still, you’re all _very_ prepared in case of an attack on your own homes, even if a full-out assault on the castle would most likely defeat us at this time.”

There were cries of denial from around the room at those words, but Harry raised his hands, arms fully extended, above his head for silence. It still took many moments for the room to achieve that, however, as the students of Hogwarts felt that all the time they had put into preparing would be enough to win.

“I speak the cold, hard truth,” Harry stated, his face as hard as his words. “If Voldemort were to attack us head-on right now, we’d win one round, maybe even two, but most of us would be injured or possibly even dead. He has the greater numbers and magical creatures on his side, and my friends and I haven’t even _begun_ to teach you the strategies that have been thought up for how to defend our castle. There’s still quite a lot for you to learn, and it’s the hope of all of us that this castle _is not_ attacked until sometime next year, if only because we know how much better everyone will be with extra time to learn and practice.”

“We’ve been studying and practicing like nothing else!” a male voice complained from the middle of the group, and Harry didn’t even try to search for its owner as most of the other agreed with him.

“Yes, and you’re so much further than we _ever_ expected you to be,” Ginny told them, moving to stand next to Harry. “If you had asked us at the beginning of the year where we thought you’d be, we’d have probably said not even specializing yet, but you’ve proven us wrong. When we return from break, fourth years and above will be training in dragonhide armor for every single lesson they have. We’ll also be mixing years and types together to teach you to adapt to who you’re fighting with in terms of size, ability, and number. You’ll learn to fight in different groups that we’ve already chosen as well as random ones of the same sizes of those groups. Your training is only beginning, and you’ll soon see this.”

“However, we have a few parting gifts for you,” Harry added, gesturing to his friends behind him, where a number of large boxes were suddenly visible. “If you’re attacked, you want to always have your weapons on you, so we recruited many of the older students who needed a break from studying but needed something to do and asked them to find us some spells.”

“New wand holsters,” Ginny continued, “charmed to be invisible, make it impossible for your wand to be stolen from inside the holsters, and once inside, your wands will always instantly return to them if stolen from your hand. We then have hundreds of the cords that we ourselves use to hide our daggers, but these will make it so that your daggers can’t be seen, felt, or get in your ways. As for your swords, well, we added a special charm to these belts we made, and they make it so that your swords are the belt buckle, and tapping it three times allows it to be in your hand.”

“What if we don’t wear belts?” a girl called from the back of the room.

“Then they turn into a wide, leather bracelet,” Astoria returned, a smile on her face, and Harry knew the girl was one of her friends. “See?” Astoria held up her left wrist, and everyone could see the gold, dragonhide bracelet around her wrist. All of those with the dragonhide belts Harry had gifted his friends all those years ago had charmed them to act just as these leather ones did.

“When you come up here, we’ll charm them the color you want,” Daphne told the group. “First years, come on up here first.”

With that, the handing out of the gifts began, and soon weapons were well hidden. Of course, most would learn that leaving their swords hanging from their belts rather than hidden in them was actually easier during a real fight, but for the three-week break, it was an excellent idea as they could always have the weapons on them without it being suspicious. It would especially help those whose families had no idea of their training.

Still, he was pleased to see the smiles on the younger students’ faces as they received even more cool stuff to use, even if the older students understood quite well why they were being given out.

…

“I really hope no one is attacked during the break,” Susan said worriedly from her place by a window as they watched the students board the train at Hogsmeade Station. “It’s Christmas.”

“Which makes it the best time for Tom to attack,” Harry sighed, but they all knew he agreed with Susan. It was hard to imagine the people, who looked so happy as they got onto the train that would take them home to their families for three weeks, could be attacked and lose those they loved like Euan had.

“So many innocents,” Ginny whispered, and Harry pulled her closer to him and kissed the top of her head. “They’re determined and willing to learn to fight, but they don’t understand, don’t truly know why they’re learning all of this.”

“No, they don’t, but those black envelopes…” Harry replied just as quietly. In his mind, he could picture the numerous times the entire Hall had gone silent as a black envelope flew into the room, landing in front of students of all ages and Houses, many times more than one coming at once. A shadow followed those envelopes, and each envelope brought about more determination in each person, even the eleven-year-olds, some of whom were now orphans.

Each time he saw a black envelope, Harry couldn’t help but think about how this shouldn’t be happening. If only he could just go out and kill Voldemort, this wouldn’t be happening, but instead, he was sitting around at school, going to classes and teaching others. It was those mornings that he wished he could just quit school and go out to hunt the bloody snake down, but he couldn’t. His friends — no, his family — wouldn’t let him think about, even if it would end things earlier.

So, instead, he put more effort into the Hogwarts Protectors. He helped Ron and the other strategists as they went over maps and models of the castle, offering ideas where he could. Harry would slip into the private training rooms where the students practiced on their own, helping them how he could. When he was teaching, Harry would push them through their paces, but they always came out that much better in the end. Sometimes, Harry would help the others even when he was completely exhausted after training or when he finally finished another pile of homework he had been assigned.

When his friends confronted him about what he was doing, he brushed them off, saying that he was just helping the others. He knew that he had worried his friends and they were hoping this holiday would help him, but he just felt so _helpless_ as he watched families torn apart by a man that could now, finally be killed.

“Dad and Amelia are leaving as many of the Aurors on duty as they can over the break, and they’ve got people in each area with more than just two or three magical families set up with magical orbs that will inform the Ministry the moment Death Eaters appear in the area,” Tracey reminded Harry as the compartment fell silent at the mention of the envelopes, breaking him from his thoughts. “Hopefully that will help cut down on deaths during the break until the Professor can help us again.”

“We can hope,” was muttered by a few around the compartment, Harry among them.


	18. Chapter Eighteen

Harry collapsed onto his bed, his bag that held his school things for his homework as well as his weapons and some other things he brought home on the floor by the door. He looked up at the ceiling, which reflected the setting sun outside the Manor at the moment. Then Harry turned to watch the animals silently play and wrestle and have fun on his walls, remembering a time when he and his friends did that every other week, back before Voldemort returned.

“It’s hard, isn’t it?” a voice said from behind him, and Harry turned onto his right side to see Remus standing in the doorway, looking at the walls of Harry’s room.

“Yes,” Harry agreed with a sigh. “I wish we could go back to those days, when we could be so carefree and just have fun like that.”

“It will happen, but for now, you just have to enjoy those moments when you let go,” Remus told him, moving to sit down near the foot of Harry’s bed, by his feet. Harry sat up and leaned against his pillows.

“We do enjoy those times, but they’re so few and far between…” Harry trailed off, knowing Remus understood where he was going with this.

“Which makes them all the more precious while also reminding you of what you’ve lost,” Remus filled in. “I know, I remember, and I understand. We all do. Enjoy the next three weeks, only train lightly and play for the rest. You need to relax, calm down, and recover from your hard year.”

Harry nodded tiredly, and Remus smiled gently, placing a hand on Harry’s ankle before standing up and leaving the room.

…

Euan shared mischievous looks with Natalie and Graham as they snuck around the battle field, their clothes and skin charmed to be white so that they blended in with the snow around them. They had just finished setting up yet _another_ trap, and it looked as if the best people to land in it were about to.

Too busy attacking Astoria and Draco with snow, Harry and Tracey didn’t see the trap until it was too late, and Euan grinned as he watched it activate. Snow suddenly rose from the ground, the two of them standing on it, and it moved until it was above a large, thick pile of snow the three of them had made just for this. The snow holding Harry and Tracey up suddenly disappeared, and they fell straight into the pile below, making a large, deep hole in the middle of the pile.

Around the grounds, everyone was laughing, and it was only when the two of them didn’t emerge for a while that Euan began to worry. Either they were hurt or planning their own trap…

Snow exploded from behind him, Natalie, and Graham, and they spun around to see at least fifty snow swords. Hundreds of snowballs suddenly hit them from all sides, and the swords joined in almost… gleefully, Euan would say if the swords had people wielding them.

It didn’t take long for the three of them to be completely covered in a layer of snow with more being added to it, if the pounding sounds above them were any indication. Still, they had been left holes to allow them to breathe, and the three of them were laughing at the unexpected retaliation. Euan hadn’t even realized Harry and Tracey would know who had attacked them, and he still didn’t know how they figured it out.

“Now what?” Natalie asked breathlessly when they stopped laughing.

“Let’s make a series of tunnels beneath the fighting above, using magic to keep them up,” Graham decided with a grin. “We’ll make them small enough that very few of the others could even fit in them. Once we’re done, we can use them to attack.”

Euan and Natalie agreed, and the three of them took off, continuing their part in the snowball war and enjoying it completely.

…

“That was really fun,” Tracey told Harry as they headed up to his room so that he could change into fresh, warm clothes before dinner. “I wasn’t expecting anything that Euan, Graham, and Natalie threw at us.”

“I already told you that they’ll replace us as the pranksters at Hogwarts after next year,” Harry reminded her in amusement, reaching into his dresser to pull out a long-sleeved shirt and jeans, having already thrown boxers and socks onto his bed. “Still, you’re right. I wasn’t expecting any of that. Their prank that lifted us up, or for them to actually build tunnels below us that would allow them to do stealth attacks. They’re getting quite creative.”

“Did you see their faces when their trap managed to lift us into the air?” Tracey asked as she watched the walls, the sounds of Harry changing filling the room. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen that look on their faces.”

“And that’s why we’re going to follow Remus’ suggestion and only train a little so that we enjoy the rest of our break,” Harry replied, voice muffled due to his shirt. “The basement is a pretty good place to use our Animagus forms, you know.”

“Very true,” Tracey said with a laugh, turning when Harry made a sound in his throat and began tossing his wet clothes into his hamper. “Maybe we’ll do that after dinner if everyone isn’t too tired from that snowball fight.”

“Fight, Trace?” Harry asked with a touch of disbelief. “That was a snowball _war_.”

Tracey could only laugh.

…

Harry was slightly shocked when he heard a knock on his door after midnight the second night back, but he called quietly, “Come in.” His shock only grew when Hannah slipped into the room, but he sat up and made room for her next to him on his bed.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. Usually she went to Susan or Justin if she had a problem, so this was unusual.

“Susan and Justin are asleep already,” she said quietly, her eyes looking down at the green comforter on his bed. “My mum was just in my room, talking with me… She didn’t want to tell me earlier because of classes, but if it wasn’t for the protections added to our house, she wouldn’t be alive right now.”

Harry blinked until that sank in, quickly moving to put his arm around her shoulders and pulling her towards him. Hannah began to shake with very quiet sobs as the idea of her mother not being around anymore hit her fully.

“Shh,” Harry told her softly, just as he had with Euan that summer. “She’s alive, she’s safe…” This went on until Hannah calmed down, and she pulled away rubbing her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she sniffed. “I just…”

“Needed someone to talk to?” he suggested. “Someone who understands what’s going on just a little bit?”

“Yeah,” she whispered. “You helped Euan the most, and…” Harry nodded in understanding. “I know she’s not dead, but just the idea that she escaped only _moments_ before Death Eaters broke through our protections… It’s scary to even think about.”

“She escaped and is alive, Hannah,” Harry told her. “Spend part of tomorrow with her, and tell Susan and Justin what happened in the morning. They’ll understand.”

Hannah nodded, hugged him one more time, and quietly left with a whispered, “Thanks.”

…

“Did you lot tell the students at Hogwarts that if someone uses one of the Portkeys the Aurors will be alerted?” Samuel asked the next night at dinner, and Harry and the others shared surprised and confused looks before nodding. “Good, because we’ve had five families appear while the students stay behind to fight the Death Eaters, getting Aurors out there before there’s very much damage.”

“They’re _fighting_?” most of them gasped, some in shock and many in anger.

“They fight to protect their neighbors until the Aurors get there, and the moment they see the Aurors, they Portkey out of there with their spare pendants,” Amelia reported. “None have been injured in any way, and it protects their friends.”

Harry just sighed while he shook his head, realizing that what they were doing was very well planned out and the right thing to do. There wasn’t really anything for them to reprimand them about, and it saved more lives.

…

Harry tackled Blaise, sending the bear flying through the air until he hit the ground with a crash. Blaise then started to stand up, growling, but a lion leaped on him. The lion bit Blaise’s neck lightly, and Harry could see amusement shining in Daphne’s blue eyes.

Suddenly, two foxes leaped on Harry’s back, and he started before thinking of what to do. He sat there, unmoving, for a few minutes, just watching Daphne and Blaise wrestle while Astoria, a golden eagle, flew above them. Then, when Draco and Theo least expected it, he jumped straight up, throwing them from his back, and ran away from them, tongue hanging between his teeth.

“ _Nice one_ ,” Maya hissed as she passed by, headed in the direction of the foxes.

“ _Thanks_ ,” Harry replied as he looked around again.

Of course, he looked up just in time to see a panther and a tiger leaping onto him, a cheetah not far behind. Harry tried to get Hermione and Susan off of him before Justin reached them, but they had gotten good holds on him, and Justin joined the fold. Three against one, all of them almost as large as him, wasn’t really fair, but Harry didn’t mind as he rolled over onto his back so he could paw at them.

This was all for fun, so who cared if some of the fights were uneven? It wasn’t as if people weren’t switching sides at random; there went Justin, joining his side and attacking Susan. It was all for fun.

…

It was Christmas Eve afternoon, and Harry was headed upstairs to his room to find a new pencil as the one he had been using was finally just too small for him to write with. As he passed by the floor where his friends were all staying, he heard pounding and laughter, which made him freeze and look down the hall.

Hannah was leaning against the wall outside of her and Susan’s room, laughing her head off, and Harry could tell from the banging on the door that she had locked two people in the bedroom. He decided to take a detour and slipped down the hall to Hannah, listening to the voices of Susan and Justin yelling at her through the door in amusement.

“Locked them in there?” he asked, and Hannah jumped but nodded as her laughter calmed down. “Doing what Tracey and I did this summer?”

“But of course,” Hannah replied with a smirk that was rarely seen on her face. “How else are these two going to get over their shyness?” She gestured towards the bedroom, where the pounding had finally stopped, and the voices of their friends could be heard.

“Did you lock the door?” Harry asked, and Hannah nodded. Pulling out his wand, Harry checked the charms on the door and added one more. “For good measure,” he told Hannah, and she grinned. “Enjoy,” he called over his shoulder as he turned and headed back to the stairs.

“I will!” she returned, and Harry grinned.

A few minutes later, when he had his pencil, Harry stopped by their room again, and Hannah was smiling happily. Cocking an eyebrow, Harry shot her a look, and she gestured to the bedroom. Harry listened closely and realized they weren’t even talking anymore. He gave Hannah a thumbs-up and left to return to the living room, quite pleased to have a story to tell the others.

…

Christmas morning, after all the gifts were opened and breakfast had been consumed, was an interesting morning at Marauder Manor.

Graham, Natalie, Euan, and Maya could be seen with the new pranking supplies sent by the twins, completely ignoring the disapproving looks from the Pritchard parents as they discussed ways to use them while Natalie’s parents tried to distract the Pritchards from it all. Hermione, Padma, and Terry were deep in their new books in a corner of the room, all three of their families shaking their heads at them. Hermione’s parents were talking to the Greengrasses, Boots, Patils, Bones, Mrs. Abbott, and Amelia about the Wizarding World while Parvati talked with Hannah, Susan, and Justin; Terry’s younger siblings were playing gobstones in another corner of the room.

Theo, Tracey, and Harry were sitting with Remus, Sirius, Tonks, Samuel, and Daniella, talking about pranks pulled at Hogwarts over the years and other fun things done at the school. Harry and Tracey especially enjoyed the stories about James and Lily Potter. Neville and his grandmother were nearby, both listening in on the stories and talking about past stories of Neville’s own parents.

Draco, Astoria, Daphne, and Blaise were nowhere to be found, but most in the Manor suspected they had found some of the mistletoe hidden in some of the lesser-used areas of the home, so no one was really worried.

Overall, it was an excellent Christmas with the families of all their friends getting together, even if the Pritchards _did_ look at Hermione’s Muggle parents with something bordering on disgust. Everyone enjoyed themselves, and the parents liked getting to know those who watched their children so often. It was a good Christmas.

…

“I’m glad you both worked things out,” Harry told Fleur and Bill two days after Christmas, and Bill looked surprised while Fleur smiled at him. “Fleur wrote to us during the year to tell us how she was doing, and she mentioned things were getting a bit tough between the two of you, mostly because she couldn’t tell you, Bill, about this.” Harry gestured all around them, meaning Marauder Manor.

“Yes, well, we fixed things up easily once she told me,” Bill said with a smile as they shared a look.

Just as the silence was getting a bit awkward, Tonks and Remus Flooed into the house after a night out in the Muggle world. Thankful for the excuse to end the silence, Harry quickly moved over and helped Tonks stand up. As he grabbed her hand, he noticed something different and made a sharp noise in his throat.

“Moony!” Harry yelled in surprise. “Why didn’t you warn us?”

His yell brought the others into the room, and it didn’t take long for everyone to see the engagement ring on Tonks’ finger. Congratulations were shared all around, and Remus at least looked sheepish as Harry and Sirius asked him why he hadn’t told them about his plans. The women dragged Tonks off to find out how Remus had asked, and the men brought out Butterbeer for the teens and beer for the adults, Remus choosing a glass of elf-made wine instead.

It was a very celebratory night in Marauder Manor.

…

“What sort of prank should we pull when we get back to school?” Harry asked Tracey while looking at his Journal, which was open to a conversation with Ginny so she could add input.

“I was thinking we should try something on random students this year,” Tracey commented, looking over Harry’s shoulder.

_Ginny: That could work as long as there’s one from each year and House, but what?_

“Well… I _did_ have this Christmas-themed idea…” Harry began slowly.

…

It was the last snowball war of the break, the afternoon before they had to return to Hogwarts, and the grounds were absolute _chaos_.

Many teams had taken the idea of tunnels and were underground for attacks, leaving only a few above. Harry and Tracey had created a magically-reinforced fort that wouldn’t allow sneak attacks from below, though it had taken four hours of research to find the right spells as they wanted to still be able to attack those below them. Now they were sending their magical swords down into the tunnels to attack all who dwelled there, using another researched spell to warn them when someone was directly underneath them so that could fire a bunch of snowballs into the hidden passages that led directly beneath the fort.

As this was going on, the tunnels were being filled with snow and even collapsing as the war became too much for them. Some of the fighters were trying to blend in with the walls and ambush their enemies, but everyone had caught onto the idea quickly and began checking for human life before moving down a tunnel. Graham, Natalie, and Euan had dug tunnels beneath the warzone tunnels, even making some in the earth rather than snow, and they were doing ambushes that way.

Above ground, Susan and Justin had turned on Hannah, and she had found an ally in Neville. Each pair had made a fort and piles of snowballs, firing them at the other fort to try and destroy it. Hannah and Neville shared grins as they panted and worked together to make some cannonball-size snowballs to launch together, effectively putting holes in Susan and Justin’s fort; all of this was done without a single word.

Theo suddenly joined Harry and Tracey in their fort, and after swearing he was on their side for the rest of the war, they began their attacks yet again, this time targeting Draco and Astoria in their fort not far away. Those two had been taking turns going underground on the offensive, sometimes going down there just to try and attack Harry and Tracey. Now Theo was doing the same, and the two “siblings” couldn’t help their grins as Draco screamed in shock before escaping his own fort, Theo standing tall with his arms raised in triumph.

Suddenly, a snow wolf jumped at Theo and knocked him to the ground, and it was quickly determined that Astoria was controlling it. Harry and Tracey worked quickly to make snow wolves, lions, and more large animals, even a few birds. Astoria had to quickly retreat underground, and Theo destroyed the fort before returning to Harry and Tracey, protected by some of the snow animals. The birds were flying and enjoyed dive-bombing the people they spotted while the other animals either prowled the tunnels or grounds, some sticking around to protect the base.

From there, the war just escalated. Snowmen and snow angels were created and animated to attack others along with new animals, including a dragon. Weapons and snowballs were charmed to work on their own except against the owners and allies, flying this way and that. Tunnels were collapsed and rebuilt in secret, going deeper and deeper into the ground. Forts were created and destroyed by Theo, Tracey, and Harry above ground while they also took turns joining in on the fun beneath them.

By the time the teens were called in for dinner, they were soaking wet, covered in mud, very red in the face, and laughing their heads off at the fun they had had as well as at a comment Harry had just made. When asked what the comment was, the teens all burst out into laughter again, but Harry remained calm long enough to tell the adults, “We realized just how much work Sirius is going to have fixing the grounds once we leave tomorrow,” before he joined his friends in hysterics, leaving the adults to look out at the grounds in horror as they saw the mess that had been left behind.

…

“You should have _seen_ their faces,” Draco was telling the other students as they made their way into the Great Hall for dinner, trying so hard not to laugh. “They looked out at the grounds and saw how well we had destroyed them with our tunneling and fort-building and snow creations that they couldn’t be anything but absolutely _horrified_!”

Laughter rang out from the group as Tracey, Ginny, and Harry rejoined them, having just come back from a discussion with the Hogwarts elves to catch the end of the story. Teachers and other students glanced up at the group, but no one commented as the students of all ages began splitting up to tell everyone else the story of the now-legendary snowball war that had occurred at the home of the Hogwarts Protectors’ leaders.

Of course, when everyone began eating and bangs were heard throughout the room, the amusement rang even louder. Professor Dumbledore had been transformed to look like Santa Claus while a single student at each table, quite obviously picked at random, was now one of Santa’s reindeer or elves. Even more fun occurred when Santa’s sleigh suddenly appeared in the middle of the Great Hall, and all of those who had been changed went to their spots on said sleigh before it began to fly around the Hall. It took quite a while for the laughter to calm after that when even those who had been pranked laughed, once returned to normal.

_Overall_ , Harry thought to himself as he laughed and thought back on the break, _it had been a good Christmas._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, I never forgot that Hannah Abbott’s mother was murdered during sixth year. This chapter had my response to that piece of canon. Otherwise, a pretty carefree chapter to allow them to relax. My only warning: This is the calm before the storm. The next chapter grows darker, though nowhere near the level of Chapter Four with Euan. Just darker.


	19. Chapter Nineteen

“Split up by year, then House, and finally by gender,” Harry ordered, and the sixth and seventh years hurried to follow his orders. “Look around you. Those people standing closest to you are going to be the squads you train in for the next month, if we go by military terms. Those of the same House and year as you are going to make up the platoons we’ll train as. From there, we’ll add in different ways of organizing you into larger and larger groups. For the moment, we’ll stick to the squads.”

“For today, the sixth and seventh years are going to be going up against their equivalent in the other year, so sixth year Gryffindor boys against seventh year Gryffindor boys, etc.,” Ginny continued. “The sixth years up here will be rejoining their dorm mates for this exercise, but we realize our levels are different, so they’ll be fighting on your levels rather than what we normally fight at. The tougher your fight, the harder they will fight. The rest of us not in sixth year will be judging and watching.”

There was quite a bit of muttering around the room as the sixth years with colored Journals rejoined those they went to class with, the six Slytherins creating groups of two girls and four boys. Still, no one argued against it, and Ginny continued.

“You’ll each be entering a separate room with one judge in each room, and the battle will be over when one side is defeated. The point of this is to learn how to work as a team with those in your squad. Just because some groups are larger than the other doesn’t mean the smaller group can’t win as long as they have good teamwork. Good luck.”

Doors appeared with House and gender listed on them, and the groups entered their rooms. Those left behind to wait until just before the battle knew that the Slytherins felt they had no chance of winning, but the seventh years had more people, so if they worked well together, it was quite possible they could overwhelm the sixth years, despite their training.

…

Tracey and Daphne glanced around the room and took in their surroundings, quickly moving over to the side labeled “Sixth Years.” It was the two of them against five other girls, and they had promised to only go as hard as the other girls did, though they could use their speed and up their levels if they felt the seventh years weren’t really trying.

Astoria then entered the room and climbed up a ladder to a box above the door so she could watch from a safe distance. Tracey and Daphne shared eye rolls as they knew she had most likely just stated she was going to be in here to watch her sister fight, not letting anyone else have a chance of getting this room.

“Begin,” she announced, and Tracey quickly slipped her sword and wand out. With a few quick moves, she had attached an invisible dagger to her sword handle. Beside her, Daphne had decided to fight with her sword and dagger. This was a teaching lesson as well as a battle, so they were going to make sure their students fought against different types of attacks.

“Ten o’clock,” Tracey suddenly hissed as she saw a small rock move on the field to her left, and Daphne nodded slightly while replying, “I’ve got both one and two.”

“You take one and ten while I take two and four?” Tracey asked, referring to the fourth person she had just heard coming from slightly behind them. It meant they would be switching sides, and that would confuse the seventh years.

“As long as I get seven,” Daphne replied, and they had an agreement.

At an unspoken signal that was another noise from the seventh years, the two girls spun around to switch places and jumped at the other girls. Tracey took off the Disillusionment Charm on her two girls so she could see them and began the fight. Metal clashed around the room as swords hit, and Tracey soon realized she should have started working with the students sooner. Up against someone that they knew already knew all of their moves, the girls were improvising and creating moves on the spot, a few of them quite handy, and Tracey put them into the back of her mind.

The unexpectedness of some of their attacks threw her off balance at times, and Tracey began fighting just that much harder to stop them, especially when the one who had been coming up behind her and to the left a bit, the one Daphne had claimed, came up behind Tracey to try and Stun her. It was only Tracey’s senses and practice with silent shields that didn’t require wand movements that saved her.

A sharp whistle that Tracey recognized as from Daphne’s wand had her retreating, and the two sixth years stood back-to-back, panting. The five seventh years surrounded them, and Tracey had to admit that this was a good fight and workout for them. She and Daphne were both obviously thinking on their feet to try and win this.

“What do you want to do?” Daphne hissed out while panting, watching as the girls surrounding them traded quiet words.

“Dagger boomerang and spell tennis?” Tracey suggested just as quietly as her breath returned. Daphne just nodded as they both sheathed their swords, Tracey pulling out a second dagger. With wands in their left hands and daggers in their right, both girls did a quick charm on the daggers and their own wrists before preparing themselves for another round of fighting.

Out of nowhere, one of the girls fired a Stunner, and Daphne used her wand to capture it in a group of shields while Tracey quickly threw her dagger at one of the girls, hitting her in the wrist of her wand hand. The girl’s wand fell from her grasp at the sudden impact, and Tracey pulled her arm back sharply, the dagger flying back into it due to the spell cast.

She and Daphne then separated, and Daphne sent the Stunner towards her. Tracey just set up a shield and aimed it at the girl now trying to grab her wand again, hitting her before the other four girls could shield her.

After that, it was back to action. Tracey and Daphne were using their daggers as shields, weapons, and distractions while firing spells and playing a few rounds of tennis with the other girls’ spells. It took perfect timing and aim, yet the other girls had caught on quickly and were shielding one another if someone couldn’t move in time to block a spell, though the daggers hit more often than not.

One girl got quite close to Tracey, who had just thrown her dagger, so Tracey pulled out her sword and used the invisible dagger still on it to cut the girl’s arm before Stunning her, taking out only the third girl of the five. Many of the other groups were most likely done by this point, but Tracey couldn’t think on that as she ducked Cutting Curses and Stunners and swords and daggers, using her wrist to control the dagger and swing it around the room at times, just as Daphne was doing with her own.

Then, when Daphne had her back turned and Tracey couldn’t see her, Daphne got hit with a Stunner, and Tracey was alone against two girls. Panting, tired, bleeding a bit, and thinking on her feet, Tracey pulled out some of Fred and George’s Instant Darkness Powder, throwing it into the air so she could recover a bit.

She needed a plan to win this, and it wasn’t going to be easy. These five girls made up an amazing team, and while it was wonderful on principle, it made the fight very hard to win. Tracey needed to think of something fast, because the darkness wouldn’t last forever…

Suddenly an idea came, and Tracey cancelled the spell on her dagger, returning it to its sheathe along with her sword. Then, using her wand, she began to dig a hole in the ground, using an illusion to hide the hole. With Silencing Charms around her, Tracey began to tunnel under the ground just as they had done during that last snowball war. It would give her the edge she needed to win the battle, but she would congratulate the other girls no matter who won or lost. This was a tightly fought battle, and it could still go either way.

With a Disillusionment Charm on and a small group of tunnels quickly made, Tracey popped her head back out of the original hole and saw that the powder had dissipated. The two girls were looking for her, both with their backs to her, and Tracey quickly Stunned the one further away from her. As the other girl turned at the sound of her partner hitting the ground, Tracey ducked down into the tunnels and came up on another side of the room, grinning slightly when she saw she was facing the girl’s back again. Another quick Stunner, and the fight was finally over.

Tracey pulled herself out of the hole and took off the charm, going to revive Daphne so they could heal one another. Astoria joined them and began healing the other girls before the revived those five as well. There were congratulations and compliments all around.

…

“What took so long?” Harry asked Tracey as the girls finally left their room, the last group to do so.

“Those five make an amazing team, and with only two of us, the battle almost went to them,” she replied quietly, and Harry looked the girls over again, this time with more interest.

“We’ve been given the reports by our judges,” Ginny announced. “Many of you will be working in your squads quite a bit while in here, learning how to plan and work together as a group, but some of you… you truly impressed us with your teamwork. All of you did well, of course, but there’s always room for improvement, even for your teachers.”

Harry saw Tracey and Daphne both nodding, and he realized they had truly learned a lot during this exercise. The two of them were an amazing pair to watch fight, but sometimes going up against a good team with more fighters was hard, even for the best fighting pairs. It probably didn’t help that all of those with colored Journals knew each other so well that there wasn’t much they could create on the spot that the rest couldn’t counter. Maybe they really should be dueling with this group more often…

…

The other training sessions like that one went just as well, and after the initial testing, the main sessions for each group now centered around training in teams. After learning new spells or moves, they would break off into teams, sometimes squads and sometimes platoons, to fight against other groups. In every fight of the highest level, half the colored Journal group would make up their own groups and join in while the rest judged, changing every Sunday.

Fourth years and above were given black dragonhide armor the second group training sessions they had, and after being shown how to put it on and practicing with it for half an hour until they were comfortable enough, training began. That day was spent learning how to fight in the armor, and after that, they were on their own and expected to fight as if the armor was something they had been wearing the entire time.

By the end of January, the first years were asking if they could learn more spells and possibly even try out healing and flying like the older students were allowed to to, finally getting their own swords to fight with. The older students were mixing their squads and platoons up so that House and age were random among their levels, and soon they would be moving onto mixing the levels as well, changing who went to training when for it.

Outside of the Hogwarts Protectors, classes were going well, even if many students in the upper years were cursing the teachers for the homework loads. With exams looking quite a bit closer on this side of Christmas, teachers were beginning to revise a bit for OWL and NEWT students and even the sixth years while giving them tougher and tougher assignments, both during and outside of class.

Voldemort launched a few larger-scale attacks after Christmas break, most likely just to show that he was still there and still attacking people and still powerful. His victims, numbering in the hundreds, and possibly thousands, were mostly Muggle, although a few more Hogwarts students were made orphans as well.

The Ministry was working overtime as they tried to stop the attacks as best they could, find homes for families who had lost theirs, and just keep everything as calm as possible while still fighting. Healers were feeling the same chaos as they healed all victims who came their way, Obliviating any Muggles they had to heal, and turning in Death Eaters who were forced to come to them because Voldemort wouldn’t heal them, the rookies.

Of course, one day in early February did anything but help the situation, and it affected both Hogwarts and the Ministry, though in slightly different ways…

…

It was Thursday afternoon in the middle of sixth year Transfiguration’s double period when it happened.

Professor McGonagall was walking around the room as her students silently worked on conjuring when Professor Dumbledore entered the room. Everyone turned to watch as he spoke to the Deputy Headmistress, who covered her mouth with her hand in horror, though she didn’t look at anyone. Her eyes grew very sad as she moved to her desk to sit down, waving towards Professor Dumbledore, who knew what she was telling him to do.

“Ms. Davis, could you accompany me to my office, please?” he asked, his eyes without their twinkle and his face looking grave.

Harry looked at Tracey in horror as her face seemed to collapse in on itself, her face going completely blank as everyone turned to watch her. The look on his face was one that had been seen many times throughout the year when…

Rather than think about it, Harry stood up and walked over to Tracey, helping her stand by putting an arm around her waist. He met the Headmaster’s eyes with determination, and the old man nodded in resignation, recognizing that Harry wasn’t going to let Tracey go to his office alone. So the three of them left together, Harry helping Tracey, and no one else tried to even move.

The three of them were silent as they walked through the corridors, and Harry knew that he and Tracey were both hoping that Professor Dumbledore wasn’t going to tell them what they thought he was. They also knew it was a futile hope.

Still, they followed the Headmaster into his office and stood opposite him as he sat at his desk, which had a vial of memories sitting upon it and a note next to the vial, waiting for him to speak. Harry’s left arm was still around Tracey’s waist, and her right arm was around his shoulders, both using the contact for support and comfort.

“Ms. Davis, Mr. Potter…” Professor Dumbledore shook his head slightly. “I am so very sorry to have to be the one to inform you, but Mr. and Mrs. Davis died when Death Eaters attacked their home this morning. I was only informed myself just minutes ago.”

Harry knew that Tracey was in just as much shock as he was, both of them unable to believe that the two who had done so much for them were gone. They were Tracey’s parents, and they had become surrogate parents for Harry when they became his guardians when he was just barely twelve. Samuel and Daniella couldn’t just be _gone_!

“With the letter, I was also sent a vial of memories, charmed to only open to one of you,” Professor Dumbledore continued, and Harry concentrated on his words rather than his own thoughts. “The letter says they are memories of what happened by witnesses, if you wish to watch them.”

Looking into Tracey’s shocked blue eyes, Harry knew that they both had to see the memories now, while it still had yet to sink in, because once it had sunken in, neither of them would be strong enough to do this. So, he looked Professor Dumbledore in the eyes and nodded.

Professor Dumbledore retrieved his Pensieve, and Harry took the vial of memories from him. With Tracey’s help because he was still holding her, they managed to open the vial and place the memories in the, thankfully empty, Pensieve. The Headmaster was still sitting at his desk, and Harry knew the man understood that this was for them and them alone, so he and Tracey each placed a finger in the silver memories, and they were drawn into them.

…

_“Samuel, just let her come with you,” Remus sighed in exasperation. “She wants to see not only her home but also how the Aurors are coming along. If anything happens, not only can she defend herself, but there will be you and the Second Force there to protect her.”_

_Daniella smiled in thanks at the werewolf, and Remus nodded. Everyone in Marauder Manor knew that she was the only one who lived there full-time who hadn’t been back to Davis Manor to see the Second Auror Force train, and it appeared she would finally get her chance._

_“Oh, alright,” Samuel sighed, and Daniella kissed him on the cheek in thanks._

The memory swirled and changed to a new one, this one at Davis Manor rather than Marauder Manor. It was obviously from a new source.

_“It’s Death Eaters!” Samuel yelled as the protections came down around Davis Manor. “Aurors, to the Floo, and get to the Ministry! NOW! THAT IS AN ORDER! Where will we be if you’re all dead?!”_

_At those words, the Aurors stopped trying to argue at their orders to retreat. Everyone raced from the grounds to the various Floos hooked up in each fireplace of the Manor, just in case something like this happened. Samuel and Daniella stood in the entrance hall with Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, Patricia Stimpson, and Robert Weston behind them. The two Davises were looking out the door as the grounds of their home were soon overrun with Death Eaters. With sighs, they turned around._

_“What are you four still doing here?” Samuel demanded. “I ordered everyone to evacuate!”_

_“There aren’t enough Floos, and it’s going to take a while to get us all out of here, Sir,” Robert reported. “It was decided that the four of us would stay to protect everyone else so they could get out of here.”_

_“No, you Aurors are all we have to protect Britain from the Death Eaters, and we can’t lose any of you here,” Samuel stated. “When the school year ends, if you’re not here, who will train the seventh years leaving from the Hogwarts Protectors this time? We need you lot to stay alive, even if it’s just to train the next group willing to help.”_

_“But Samuel, if we don’t protect the Aurors, who will?” Patricia asked sharply._

_“We will,” Daniella told them as she and Samuel drew their wands._

_“Daniella, Samuel, NO!” all four yelled. “If you die, where will the Department of Magical Law Enforcement be?” Alicia continued._

_“Auror Shacklebolt is next in line if he proves loyal to the Ministry,” Samuel said, turning to face the doors and enchanting them to give a bit of extra time. “For now, you four need to go. I know there are lines for the Floos, even now, but you can’t be here when the Death Eaters arrive.”_

_“Go, and be sure to tell our children that we love them and did this for them,” Daniella asked of the four. “We love them both dearly, and they need to live, even if it means we must die to allow Voldemort to be killed.”_

_The four couldn’t say anything more as Samuel and Daniella both had expressions of love and tears on their faces while thinking of Harry and Tracey, kissing one final time before turning to face the doors. Their order was obvious even without words: Go._

_Angelina pulled the other three away, but they stayed nearby, watching while also keeping an eye on the nearest Floo, waiting for the line to disappear into the flames so they could escape as well. It was one of the dying wishes of this amazing couple who had gained so much respect from those they knew._

_The Death Eaters tore down the doors, and Samuel and Daniella set off the traps that had been set up when Davis Manor became home of the Second Force and updated as the Weasley twins gave them new supplies. Death Eaters were heard screaming both inside and outside the house, falling to the ground, and those not hit walked over their comrades. All that stood between them and the Aurors was this one couple._

_Then the Davises began to move, and they proved why they were respected when it came to battle. Both of them fired Cutting Curses and bursts of fire while ducking and dodging, never once tripping or hitting anything despite the lack of room. Death Eaters were falling left and right, but the pair was getting cut and losing blood._

_“Angie!” Alicia called, and Angelina turned to see that the Floo was open. She waved for the others to go on as she looked back at the Davises. As the Floo went off three times, Angelina watched Daniella get hit by three Cutting Curses in a row, slowing her down enough that a_ Killing Curse _hit her head-on._

_Samuel screamed as he saw his wife fall, and he fired off a huge flame, burning six Death Eaters to death before it ended. Mad with grief, Samuel continued to fight, but in the end, blood-loss and his grief were his downfall as he was hit with another Cutting Curse and fell to the ground, landing on top of his wife. He kissed her on the head one last time before hugging her, realizing this was the end._

_Angelina, the last Auror to run for the Floo, saw the green light bouncing against the walls of the room and hallway as she stepped into the Floo and disappeared._

…

Harry and Tracey came out of the Pensieve in tears, barely holding onto one another. Still, Harry had enough presence of mind to pull the memory from the Pensieve and put it back into the vial, slipping it into his pocket before holding Tracey tightly in his arms.

“I am truly sorry for your loss,” the quiet, sad voice of Professor Dumbledore said from behind him, and Harry looked over his shoulder to nod at the older man.

“Come on, Trace,” he whispered into her ear, his face in her dirty-blond hair. “Let’s go to the Room.”

Tracey couldn’t seem to even stand on her own, let alone walk, so Harry carefully lifted her into his arms. Thankfully, she was his height and lighter than he was, because it took him until they were in the corridor outside of Dumbledore’s office for Harry to remember to put a Feather-Light Charm on her. Then, he walked quickly through the still-empty corridors to the seventh floor and the Room of Requirement.

For the first time in a very long time, the room didn’t look like the HP’s training room; instead, it had become the living room at Davis Manor that they used to read in for hours, back before Voldemort’s return.

Harry sat down on the couch with Tracey on his lap, and he put both their Journals and the memories onto the coffee table in front of them. They didn’t need to be interrupted, and the vial was something that they didn’t want to break, even if they never watched the memories again.

Once that was done, Harry allowed his grief to overwhelm him as well, and they both cried while holding onto the other, the Room of Requirement responding to their request of complete privacy, allowing no one to enter until they were willing for others to be there with them, which wouldn’t be for many hours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Sighs deeply* Believe me, this was so hard to do, but I felt it needed to be done. The Second Force and Samuel, Head of the MLE, were very high level targets. Doing this was anything but easy, especially as the characters are MINE, but I did what I needed to do. At least they went down fighting and not in some silly way like falling through a curtain… In any case, the next chapter is going to be sadder for obvious reasons, but I tried not to keep that tone going for too long if I could help it.


	20. Chapter Twenty

Hours later, after classes and dinner were over but before training normally began, Harry and Tracey had finally moved. Their eyes red and tears still visible on their cheeks, they had placed the vial of memories into one of Harry’s pouches. They now sat together in a large armchair by the fire, Journals on the small table that had appeared for them right next to it. Tracey was almost in a ball, curled up in Harry’s arms and partially in his lap as he held her tightly, both of them staring into the fire and trying hard not to cry again.

Without speaking, both he and Tracey knew that they had comforted the other as much as they could. Now they needed others to help them, to take away the pain they were feeling instead of allowing them to give and take, give and take.

The Room of Requirement understood this, and when two people walked up to the Room again after dinner, a door appeared and opened, allowing them entrance.

…

Ginny and Theo rushed into the Room when they saw it was allowing them in, but they froze at the sight before them. Ginny felt her heart breaking in two as she saw the two sixteen-year-olds, only hours apart in age, siblings in all but blood, twins in many things they did, sitting curled up with one another, staring at the fire with desolate eyes. Those blue and green eyes, so normally full of a determined fire or often caught with a mischievous look in them, only reflected the red fire before them, no emotions in them at all. It was as if they were lost, didn’t know where to go, what to do.

She and Theo shared a look before moving quickly towards the pair. Neither looked up as they moved to kneel in front of their loved ones, but they both blinked when they realized someone was in front of them. Still, despite that one instant of recognition, neither moved.

“Come here, Trace,” Theo whispered softly, his voice strained with his withheld emotions as he opened his arms to her. When Tracey focused on Theo and then made a slight movement, Harry released her, allowing her to almost jump at Theo and hug him tightly as fresh tears began to fall. Theo picked her up and moved to a couch that Harry and Tracey had obviously shared earlier, most likely the first place they had sat down in here.

Ginny, instead of speaking, just stood and held out a hand to Harry. He looked up at her face, his eyes unfocused for a moment before he blinked and grabbed her hand. Harry allowed her to pull him up, grab his emerald green Journal from the table next to the armchair, and lead him into a newly-formed room.

In there was a bed because Ginny knew Harry needed to lie down, to rest, so they did. Ginny put both of their Journals into one of her pouches before removing both their belts of pouches. Then she pulled off their robes, leaving them in just their uniforms underneath.

Once that was done, Ginny gently pushed Harry onto the bed, helping him lie down in the middle, facing her. All she could do after that was hug him as she whispered, “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry,” into his ear over and over as he began to grieve again. He shook with his sobs and rocked back and forth just a bit as he cried into her torso while Ginny rubbed his head and just allowed him to let it all out.

Finally, his tears stopped, his breathing evened out, and he was asleep.

Inside her mind, Ginny was hurting just from seeing him in so much pain. Harry was everything to her, and seeing him like this… it was just as bad as seeing him that night when Cedric died, Voldemort returned, and Harry fought for his life. The pain, loss, confusion… all of it was terrifying to see in this boy who could be so determined, mischievous, loyal, intelligent, sly…

Things had been so tough on them since Voldemort was resurrected, and it only grew worse when everyone finally believed that he was back. Deaths occurred all over, and training took priority over almost everything else besides helping those who had lost family grieve. Harry had been pushing himself so hard into the training to drive away the guilt over doing nothing — most likely from his noble Gryffindor side that reared its head here and there — that Ginny could see his spirit falling further and further away from her. He had his determination, but he was losing the happiness and even the mischievousness that made him _Harry_ , the boy who pranked and had brought everyone together against all the odds. Now he was becoming Harry, the warrior, the general, the leader. And it all hurt to watch, but she did it anyway, comforting and helping him how she could, because it was all she could do for the one she loved.

That thought made her freeze for a moment, but then Ginny relaxed. She had subconsciously known for years that she loved him, just had never put a word to what she felt for Harry. And it was true, she loved him, and that was why it hurt her so badly to see him like this, to have to watch him fall away from her and lose those he loved and cared for.

“I love you, Harry,” she whispered softly, her face in his hair as she felt a few tears fall down her face for him and for Tracey and for the loss of Samuel and Daniella. “I don’t care _what_ happens; I’ll always love you. You changed my life after the Chamber, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’d be miserable without you.”

“Love you, too, Gin,” Harry whispered softly as his arms moved to hold her more tightly, and Ginny realized Harry had never been truly asleep, just dozing. “Life has been so much more fun since you became my best friend alongside Tracey, and you’re probably the only thing keeping me together and this relaxed right now. I love you so much.”

Ginny just pulled Harry closer to her, and she knew that he was actually asleep this time. His voice had gotten weaker with each word he whispered. Now, she would sleep with him, comforting him and being there for him when he needed her. She always would be.

…

Rumors had spread throughout the castle that Harry and Tracey had been pulled out of class that afternoon, but those in the NEWT-level Transfiguration had agreed to keep it quiet, so no one knew exactly why they had disappeared except for them and those with colored Journals.

So when students began going to the Room of Requirement after dinner, Euan was standing outside the entrance to the training rooms, which was still a blank wall. He wouldn’t move and waited until more students were there before speaking, his voice hollow but still filled with pain, his hazel eyes shining with unshed tears.

“There will be no training tonight, and the Room of Requirement is off-limits to everyone,” he announced, and his words were passed along the group in front of him. “You’ll most likely find out soon why, and…”

Euan trailed off as owls suddenly began flooding the group, flying in through the windows nearby to reach their recipients. Copies of the _Evening Prophet_ were dropped on the heads of their owners, and the owls disappeared, back out the window, obviously a special edition as the owls hadn’t stayed for pay. Euan picked up his own copy and looked at the front cover, his throat choking up as he held back tears.

On the cover was a picture of Samuel, Daniella, Tracey, and Harry together from when the two Slytherins were only fourteen, back before Voldemort had returned and before they had moved to Marauder Manor because this was outside Davis Manor.

******_MAGICAL LAW ENFORCEMENT DIRECTOR AND WIFE MURDERED!_ **   
**_SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD ORPHAN!_ **   
**_BOY-WHO-LIVED’S EX-GUARDIANS DEAD!_ **   
**_MINISTRY IN CHAOS!_ **

After that, no one needed an explanation as to why the Room of Requirement was off-limits. It was quite obvious that the two grief-stricken teens were in there, either crying their hearts out or asleep from exhaustion brought about by tears.

…

It was after dinner when Minister Amelia Bones finally had grieved enough for her close friend to pull herself together. She was the Minister, and she had a job to do.

The others at Marauder Manor understood, and she went back into work. There, Auror Shacklebolt was trying to get things under control, but he was having a very hard time of it. His relief was palpable when he saw her standing there, a fierce look on her face.

For another hour, Amelia organized the Aurors and told them to get home if they were now off duty while those on duty had better bloody well get back to work unless they wanted Death Eaters attacking Britain while they were in a state of chaos just because they couldn’t _do their jobs_. That set them straight very fast, especially when they remembered there were innocent children who could be killed if they didn’t calm down and get back to work.

Once that was done, Amelia brought Kingsley Shacklebolt back with her to her office, having him sit across from her. She stared him down, unsure of how to handle this. He was the best and the one to replace Samuel without a doubt, but she needed someone she could trust, not someone who was in Dumbledore’s pocket. Amelia finally decided to be blunt.

“Kingsley, you’re the best I have for Samuel’s job,” she stated, and he nodded in acknowledgement, “but I will _not_ have _any_ of my Directors be in Dumbledore’s pocket, let alone someone with true power.” Kingsley was almost openly gaping at her, but Amelia just continued. “I know all about the Order of the Phoenix and who is in it, and I will not let someone who reports back to Dumbledore work under me directly. It was one thing when you were just a senior Auror, but it’s another if you’re going to be Director.

“Now’s the time to pick a side, Shacklebolt. Either you swear an oath to not allow Dumbledore to influence your job and not to tell the man nothing unless _I_ give you permission, or you stay senior Auror and I choose someone else for the job. It’s your choice.”

Amelia watched as the normally calm man tried to pull himself together enough to think. Yes, she knew that she had been somewhat harsh, but this was war, and she didn’t need Dumbledore interfering in _her_ Ministry. At least it appeared to her that Kingsley wanted the job and seemed to realize that she didn’t truly trust Dumbledore. It had him thinking about this hard.

“What sort of things would I be permitted to pass on?” he finally asked, and Amelia was at least pleased that he had not only asked but had also realized that the instant he asked if he could put Aurors in places other than where she directed him to, he would lose the position.

“If there’s an attack, and you think Dumbledore could get reinforcements to us quickly enough, you may go ahead and tell him,” Amelia said. “But I want no mention of our forces, training, safe houses, training bases, plans, or sources passed onto him, and I’m sure I’ll find more that must be kept secret soon enough. Basically, you can use him for reinforcement, but anything else _must_ happen through me. If he finds what you’re providing isn’t enough anymore, then quit the Order, because you’re the best for this position, and we both know it.”

“Albus will not like it…” Kingsley began slowly, pausing for a moment before continuing. “But I will swear the oath.”

“Then welcome to the new job, Director,” Amelia said, a pleased, very small, smile on her face, despite the fact that she was still grieving internally for her friends.

…

“You did not kill the Aurors like I had hoped, but you did something just as good,” Lord Voldemort said very softly. “Samuel Davis, Director of the Magical Law Enforcement, is dead, and if my sources are correct, then this has hurt Harry Potter terribly. He has locked himself away since he found out the news along with the Davis girl. Very good, very good… None of you will be punished tonight. What you have done has pleased me greatly. Leave, before I change my mind.”

The Death Eaters who had survived the attack on Davis Manor left the room quickly, leaving Lord Voldemort to his thoughts.

One more major piece gone from the playing field, and one that was close to Potter… Yes, Lord Voldemort was very pleased with the results of _that_ raid.

…

It wasn’t until Friday morning, the day after the Davises had been murdered, that Harry and Tracey were seen outside of the Room of Requirement, Theo and Ginny at their sides. All four had spent the night in the Room after Harry and Tracey finally fell asleep, and house-elves had provided them with their robes and school things after they had awoken. Harry and Tracey had yet to say a single word.

When the four entered the Great Hall for breakfast, Theo and Ginny having convinced them that the school would want to see them and would understand, everyone fell silent and stood, holding their wands over their hearts. It took Harry a few moments to realize that this was their sign of respect for the passing of Samuel and Daniella Davis.

Harry and Tracey shared looks, a few tears in their eyes at the sight before them. These students, most of whom had never even met Samuel and Daniella, were honoring them with this unified show only because they knew their two children, one by blood and one not, and what little they had been told had been done by them to help the Hogwarts Protectors. In Harry’s mind, he knew that, if they could see this, the Davises would be humbled by this honor. The students of Hogwarts respected, loved, and honored Harry Potter and Tracey Davis so much that it went beyond them to Tracey’s parents.

Finally, Harry and Tracey nodded at them, and they all sat back down except for their closest friends, who moved to surround the pair. Around them, their friends took turns hugging the pair, showing their own grief with a few tears — more from Daphne and Astoria, who knew the Davises best — while trying to comfort them. Still, neither said a word as they returned the hugs and accepted the comfort and support from their friends.

Eventually, they were led to their normal table, sitting next to one another with Theo and Ginny next to their significant other. Food was put onto their plates, and Harry and Tracey were nagged softly to eat, though Harry knew he wasn’t hungry, and he had a feeling Tracey was the same way. Still, they drank the tea pressed into their hands and forced down a few bites of toast before pushing their plates away, sticking to their tea.

The others tried to get them to eat more, but everyone fell silent as Harry felt someone standing behind him. Turning, he saw the Professor Snape, his presence making all nearby fall silent. His dark eyes locked onto Harry’s, and Harry saw sympathy in them for a few moments before it disappeared, hidden behind strong, practiced Occlumency shields.

“Mr. Potter, Ms. Davis, you’ve been given the day off of classes today, and if you need more time next week, do not hesitate to come to me,” he said. “My office is also open if you need me, and I suspect the other professors feel the same. We’re here to help you how you need us.”

Tracey nodded beside him, and Harry just met his Head of House’s eyes again, understanding flowing between them. The man nodded, turned, and stalked back up to the Head Table, reclaiming his seat next to Professor McGonagall and answering whatever question she had obviously just asked.

Harry turned a bit and caught Tracey’s blue eyes, darker and sadder than he had ever seen them before yesterday, and cocked his head to the right slightly. He was asking her if she wanted to go to classes or not today, and she appeared to be thinking about it. In the end, she nodded once, very quickly, and Harry returned it with a nod of understanding. They both knew that they needed to be distracted and to be around their friends, not locked up somewhere in the castle. No, that would be for later, when their friends could help them.

“You’re both going to classes, aren’t you?” Ginny sighed, shaking her head. The others looked at her in surprise before glancing at Harry and Tracey, who nodded in response to her question. “I’m not sure whether to be pleased by this or not, but at least you’ll be with your friends.”

“I’ll watch them, Ginny, and I’m sure the others will as well,” Theo promised, and she shot him a thankful look even as the other sixth years, especially the Slytherins, nodded quickly.

“Wait, it’s Arithmancy first today, and Harry doesn’t take that class,” Neville reminded them.

“Not all of us are in Arithmancy, and you know that, Neville, seeing as you’re one of them,” Daphne sighed, shaking her head. “Harry, do you want to go the Room and train or do something else?”

Harry thought about it and realized there was something else he wanted to do besides train in the Room of Requirement, something they hadn’t done in a while. “ _Wolf_ ,” he hissed in Parseltongue under his breath, knowing that Ginny would pick it up and understand, but he didn’t want anyone who might be listening in to hear him.

“He wants to go to the Room, but he’ll show you what he feels like doing when you get there,” Ginny informed the others, who looked at her in surprise and confusion until Harry pointed at his right shoulder. That informed the others that he had spoken in Parseltongue because Ankh was on that shoulder, and it had become a sort of signal when they didn’t hear the hisses.

“Okay, and we’ll meet you in the Entrance Hall for lunch after class,” Hermione decided as people began leaving the Great Hall, some passing by to give Harry and Tracey their condolences. The group agreed quickly and began gathering their bags to head to either Arithmancy or the Room of Requirement.

When Harry and most of the sixth years got to the Room, it was the normal HP Training Room, but a door off to the side appeared, and Harry entered it to see a forest with various clearings in sight. Dropping his bag by the door, he transformed into his wolf form and quickly took off into the trees, the sounds behind him telling him the others were following.

This would be a great way to let off some of his emotions while distracting him from the heart wrenching loss he felt in his grief. Plus, it was fun, even if Harry was having a hard time appreciating it like he used to.

…

While Harry and many of his friends ran around the Room of Requirement as animals, Amelia had just confirmed Kingsley Shacklebolt as the new Director of the Magical Law Enforcement. The Aurors, especially those who had been told by the four who had stayed behind Samuel’s words on the department, had expected this and took the news easily, though it was obvious they all wished the attack had never happened. Still, Kingsley was a respected Auror, and they would all follow his orders as they had followed Samuel’s.

As Amelia watched, Kingsley’s first actions were to relocate the Second Auror Force to where the First Force trained. Instead of ordering them to follow the First Force’s training, however, he surprised almost everyone by ordering the _First Force_ to change their training to follow the Second’s, asking the Second Force to train their fellow Aurors the same way they had been taught.

Though he did not know or realize it, Kingsley had just earned even more respect from the Second Force and Amelia’s approval of his decisions. The First Force was upset, but that quickly went away that Friday as they suddenly realized how much better the Second Force was and why Director Samuel Davis had kept the two groups separate for the year and a half the Second Force had existed. With their newfound respect for their late Director and fellow Aurors, the First Force quickly joined their comrades in their approval of the new Director’s actions.

Back at Marauder Manor that evening, Amelia had one thing to say about Director Kingsley Shacklebolt before she told the group of the events of that day: “He’ll do.”

…

Harry and Tracey made it through Arithmancy, Transfiguration, and Herbology as well as lunch before it all became too much for them and they needed to get away. Classes were done, most of the students were either doing homework or training in the Room of Requirement, and the two of them were tired, just plain tired.

Tracey looked into Harry’s green eyes, normally the shade of emeralds and now going dark enough to match the grass or perhaps even the trees of the forest, and she knew he was feeling as tired as she was. They needed to get away for a while, to be alone to actually talk. Between them, they had spoken ten words at the most all day — and that was including Harry’s hiss in Parseltongue that morning. Fortunately, their friends understood and let them stay silent as the others talked, trying to distract them.

Now, though, they needed a chance to talk, to let out what they were feeling. So, together, they slipped away from their friends and used Harry’s Invisibility Cloak to walk through the corridors unnoticed to the front doors. Once out on the grounds, Tracey led the way to the lake while Harry used magic to hide their footprints in the snow that had yet to melt and most likely wouldn’t for another few weeks.

When they reached the lake, Harry moved the snow away from where they were planning on sitting close to the partially frozen lake, dried the ground beneath them, and put warming charms on them both. Tracey could only give him a look that she knew he understood was one of thanks as they sat down. She leaned against his left side while he wrapped his arm and cloak around her shoulders, her right arm around his waist. For a while, they just sat there in silence, watching the giant squid’s tentacles breaking through some of the thinner ice.

“They’re gone,” Harry finally whispered, and Tracey nodded her head against his shoulder, still looking out at the icy lake. “I can’t believe they’re gone.”

“We won’t be able to turn to Dad and ask him for help with our charms, or have Mum bring us breakfast in the mornings and water when we’re out in the basement,” Tracey agreed very softly, her voice inaudible to anyone but them. “Harry… my parents…” Tracey felt tears forming in her eyes again, and she blinked them away quickly, sick of crying even though she felt as if she could never _stop_ crying.

“I know, Trace, I know,” Harry replied just as softly. “But they love us both so much, and they went down fighting the Death Eaters and protecting the Aurors, protecting our friends.”

“It’s so hard…” Tracey said even as she internally acknowledged what he had said. She knew they had died honorably, had died fighting for what they believed in, but it hurt so much to know that the two constants in her entire life were gone, taken away from her just like that.

“And it’s going to stay hard,” Harry sighed, and she knew that he was speaking from experience. “But this pain is why we’re fighting, Trace. We can’t let more people — more _children_ — feel this pain. If someone doesn’t fight them, they’ll keep killing, taking families away from their loved ones, forcing the innocence from children. You’ve seen it, Tracey, in the Great Hall, when the black envelopes come and another student is crying until his or her friends take the student from the Hall. Every single time, the others feel more pain and learn more about the world we live in, the pain and sadness and harshness. It’s a terrible world out there, and they’re learning it while isolated from it.”

And Tracey _did_ understand, had understood ever since the day in June of 1995 when Harry had returned from that graveyard, his green eyes as haunted as they were now, Cedric Diggory in his arms as he fought pain, grief, guilt, tears… She had watched him struggle so hard to get over it, and it had hurt her as well. But, until now, she hadn’t realized that she truly _didn’t_ understand what he meant, could never understand it until someone close to her died, or she watched someone she knew die with her own eyes. Now she could understand when those who had lost their families said it burned, hurt like nothing else, felt like they had lost a part of themselves… Her heart had been grasped in harsh hands and ripped into pieces, some of them falling away while the rest were put back. There was no true way to describe this feeling, and she couldn’t bear it right now.

Yet… the idea of others, children younger than she, having to go through this terrible, terrible pain made her want to be sick.

Euan had been going through this for _months_ , and Harry had been going through something at least somewhat similar to this for _years_ , and so many students of so many ages were going through this right now and had been the entire year… Each one felt the pain differently — especially Harry, whose pain would stem from guilt rather than love — but they all felt it. Even those who had never known their parents because they died in the first war, or who didn’t know other family members through anything but stories, felt this pain on some level. This unbearable pain that they all bore anyway because they had to, because you couldn’t choose who lived and who died and who you loved and who you grieved — you just… _did._

“Harry,” she whispered, her thoughts only adding to the pain she felt, “it burns…”

“I know, Trace, the pain burns in you, and it always will, but the pain will fade with time,” he told her, his right arm coming up to wrap around her as Harry pulled her into a hug. “Right now it’s terrible, but we’ll pull through this, together, just like we always have and always will.”

Tracey felt tears coming again as she buried her head in the crook of Harry’s neck, and this time she didn’t stop them as the pain overwhelmed her again. Harry rubbed her back as memories of her parents came back to her, reminding her of the good times they had shared. Tears hit her head, sinking into her hair, and Tracey knew Harry was crying for the people who had been the first real parents to him that he could remember. Sirius and Remus were also like his parents, but her own parents were something special to the young man holding her as she cried. She was his sister, and her parents were his parents, all because he’d had neither growing up.

“You’re going to kill him, right, Harry?” she asked as her tears calmed down, cheeks still wet and eyes stinging, leaning back so their eyes could meet. “You’ll make him regret killing them, killing everyone who’s died in both wars?”

“With everything I have,” he replied softly, pulling her back to him.

Tracey had already known this, but she needed to hear it aloud after all that had happened. Harry would kill Voldemort, and Tracey would help him do it — they all would. The monster had hurt so many people, destroyed so many lives and families, and they would make him and all of his followers regret it.

Sighing, Tracey moved a bit closer to Harry, and he just tightened his hold on her.

Both of them were hurting terribly, but they would pull through this, and it would make them even stronger in the end. Just because her parents were dead didn’t mean they would stop fighting. In fact, all this did was give them more motivation, incentive, and determination to make sure Lord Voldemort died at the end of this war, and they would make sure it happened.

Lord Voldemort was going to die in the future, even if it meant dying themselves to make it happen.

 


	21. Chapter Twenty-One

The weeks following that terrible day were hard, but everyone managed through them by leaning on the others.

Sirius and Remus had come up to the school with Daniel and Samantha Greengrass that weekend to comfort the group, and Amelia had joined them Sunday evening to talk with Harry and Tracey about the difficult things: the funeral and wills.

Davis Manor, which was still in one piece but needed some repairs from the battle, all of the family heirlooms, and most of the money would go to Tracey. Harry would receive a portion of the money and certain things from the vault such as copies of some ancient books, law books, and Samuel’s journals on charms and other magic. All of the others with colored Journals received at least some money, and the other adults in their group also received money as well as a few personal possessions. Harry and Tracey also were given letters from them.

It had been officially decided that, because Tracey would be of age that August, she could continue to live where she was with Sirius acting as her guardian just as he was Harry’s, though that would have happened anyway.

Harry and Tracey had also made plans with Amelia to bury her parents on the grounds of Davis Manor, where a number of her mother’s family had been laid to rest, that summer. The plans would be kept secret, and they would make it a very private affair the first weekend back from Hogwarts.

After that weekend, things were a lot quieter around the castle. Voldemort didn’t attack for another week, obviously pleased by the result of that raid, so there were no black envelopes for a while. Of course, after that there was an attack every other night, and many more students were made orphans, but quite a large number escaped the raids, though the Muggles were, unfortunately, left behind to die. The professors understood when Harry and Tracey stayed silent in classes, doing their non-verbal work without asking questions and not trying to give any answers unless specifically called on.

In fact, the two of them had been much quieter since that day, talking when they had to and very rarely more than that. They spoke silently with each other much of the time, and only Ginny and sometimes Theo had a chance of understanding them when they were like that. As time went on, they spoke more and more to their friends, and they began to fight smiles when things amused them after three weeks, soon smiling at least a bit and even laughing here and there. When they had pulled their first prank since the murder of the Davises at the beginning of April, no one had realized it was them until they had begun laughing at the sight of every table in the Great Hall being made of jelly, and that had made everyone so pleased that the teachers hadn’t even given them detention, relieved to see two of the most-liked and most-respected students in the school acting more normal, even if it _did_ mean they were pranking again.

Their friends were obviously grieving as well, but none of them were as close to Samuel and Daniella as Harry and Tracey were, so they lowered their own grief by helping the pair as best they could. The group of colored Journal users, except for Harry and Tracey obviously, recovered within only a few weeks, but it had taken two months for the pair to get back to anything even close to normal.

The students of Hogwarts were kind to them, all quite used to those who had lost family changing quite drastically and needing months to recover. During training, everyone fought harder than ever before, seemingly motivated by the despair they saw in two of their three main leaders. And when the two of them were seen training with their friends, everyone could see that their disappearances some evenings were obviously the work of the Room of Requirement, as they were faster than before, if that was even possible, and they had learned new spells to fight with while creating new moves for their other weapons.

Throughout everything, Theo and Ginny were always seen with the pair. If Tracey and Harry were rarely apart like magnets, then it was said that Theo and Ginny stuck to them like glue, Ginny only away from them when she had to separate for her classes. Their other friends were with them quite often, but only the sight of Harry and Tracey without at least Theo, if not also Ginny, drew stares after seeing them together so much.

By late April, the Hogwarts Protectors had gotten to the point where the first years were specializing and were equal with what normal third years would know when it came to Transfiguration, Charms, and Defense Against the Dark Arts, even knowing the theory behind all of the spells they knew. Remarkably, their level of knowledge in Herbology and Potions was just as high. Older students tutored the younger ones in anything they thought might help them in a fight, and it showed in the high grades everyone was getting in their classes, especially the first years.

All of the other years were completely mixed up when it came to weekend group training. It had now become necessary for Harry and the others to use the Journals to send out a note telling someone to be in the Room of Requirement in half an hour for training, and each session had students from second to seventh year, all intermixed into squads and platoons and even beginning to form larger groups called companies.

These sessions were for teamwork, where the Room of Requirement became Hogwarts, and each group was in a different section of the castle, fighting off an invasion as a team. Their teamwork had improved to the point where they could quickly and easily fight with almost anyone, no matter who was fighting beside or back-to-back with them. It had been amazing to see, and even those with colored Journals could slide into the fights and work as if they had always been there.

The healers were doing so well that Susan, Hannah, and Justin had actually taken to using that period of time to have everyone look up more healing spells for them all to learn. Neville’s group of students, who preferred magical fighting, had moved past a good portion of spells and were now being taught ways to use what they knew in various fight scenarios. Astoria had arrived at the point where she taught new moves only one of the three lessons while the other two were taken over by sparring matches, where she instructed her students to improvise as much as they wished as many good moves came from improvising, and she taught many moves to everyone else because of that group.

Ron and the strategists had come up with some great ideas for an invasion of Hogwarts that Harry and the others were thinking of using during the last week of term after exams were done as a sort of cool-down and review of the year. The aerial squad, also led by Ron, was doing amazingly when it came to their training exercises against giants, an invading arm of Death Eaters, werewolves, vampires, and whatever other allies Voldemort may have gathered. All members of the squad could hit a large group of people with a long-range spell from high up in the air, sometimes even hitting a single person with a spell, and taking down a giant only took them a minute total in groups of five, now. Ron was having them learn how to use flares and other products his twin brothers had invented whenever they received them as well.

Harry, Tracey, and Ginny, on the other hand, had the largest group besides the general training with the multiple weapons lessons. It was fortunate that most of the group was split between Astoria’s group and Neville’s group for second lessons, though many chose the aerial squad or healing instead, because they received extra fighting training that way. The students learning to use multiple weapons could now use sword-and-wand, sword-and-dagger, dagger-and-dagger, sword-and-sword, and now they were learning how to use wand-and-dagger. Of course, many had also asked if they could be taught how to throw daggers and knives really well sometime in the future, so that was on the list shortly after learning how to use daggers and magic together but still only use daggers, which they had skipped before when doing two daggers as it was somewhat different. Lessons were going well with the weapons, and it showed in the fights when the students changed weapons out of nowhere and could still fight as if it was no problem at all.

Overall, Hogwarts was dealing with the grief of family lost exactly as it normally had. Some were quieter after each attack, and friends helped friends, but at the end of the day, they had all trained and gone to class and done their homework and played Quidditch and lived their lives, even if everything _was_ just a little bit darker with each passing attack.

…

“When?” Gregory Goyle questioned as four Slytherins sat in the otherwise-empty sixth year boys’ dormitory.

“After exams,” Pansy Parkinson replied. “That’s when he said it must be, and we have to be quick and quiet.

“How are we going to do this, though, Pansy?” Millicent Bulstrode asked, leaning forward a bit.

“We’ll talk about that near the end of May, when exams are basically here and it’s time to make sure we’re ready. For now, we’re to stay quiet and continue watching the school, passing on information when _he_ asks for it.”

“So… We wait?” Vincent Crabbe asked with his brow furrowed in confusion.

“Yes, Crabbe,” Pansy sighed, “we wait until the middle of June, and then we act.”

…

Headmaster Albus Dumbledore sat in his office, sucking on a lemon drop, as he thought deeply about this school year and many other events before it.

Everything had started at the end of the previous school year, when he had attempted to inform young Harry Potter of the prophecy, only to find out he already knew what it said.

“ _Yes_ , Professor, _I know all about that bloody prophecy_!” Harry had exclaimed. “ _The orb you’ve been protecting all year? Yeah, it’s a_ fake _! I heard the whole thing_ three BLOODY years ago!”

That was when Professor Dumbledore had realized how grave a mistake he had made by fearing that Harry Potter would turn out to be another Tom Riddle, and Harry had made sure to throw his mistake in his face.

“ _I’ve spent_ five YEARS _doing what_ no one _has_ ever _been able to do: unite the Houses! Yet_ you, _somehow, have the ability to look at that and see Tom Marvolo Riddle in me! You — you, I don’t have enough words to describe what I’m feeling right now after hearing all of this! Ginny has told me_ all _about one Tom Riddle, and I know for a fact that I’m_ nothing _like him. You’ve seen only what you want to see, Professor, not what’s really in front of you._

“ _So I’m not your bloody chess piece to control! It doesn’t matter! I’m a person, not something for_ you _to control, just as I’ve been saying for_ years _! Every time I tell you, you ignore me. Bloody hell, you even went far enough to_ kidnap _me this summer, turning the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix against the friends I left behind when I escaped!_

“ _It’s as if you believe you control everyone in the world no matter what. Who’s the Dark Wizard, Lord Voldemort — or_ you _?”_

Harry had had every right to say every single word of that, and Professor Dumbledore had earned all the glares he had been sent that meeting. He hadn’t trusted a young boy who had acted nothing like Tom Riddle, all because he had been sorted into the same House as that other poor orphan who had turned out so badly.

And yet, after all he had done to the young Slytherin, after how he had wronged the boy, Harry Potter was still willing to give him a second chance.

Professor Dumbledore wasn’t sure how to take this, but he was grateful. Perhaps, if they could come to an agreement, he and Harry could work together so that this war was won.

Unfortunately, Professor Dumbledore had been told off again when he pressed Harry for information and didn’t give anything in return. It was so very hard to realize that Harry was his equal, perhaps even something more. He had watched Harry grow up, become the obvious leader of the students of Hogwarts, and now Albus Dumbledore realized that he just may not be the head of the fight against Lord Voldemort.

Harry Potter had support from so many places including his fellow students and obviously the Ministry through Amelia Bones. He, Albus Dumbledore, had his Order and connections in many places, but Harry had done so much more during this war, gotten so much accomplished through the connections _he_ had, and Harry was still in school!

It had taken Professor Albus Dumbledore many months after that meeting at the end of Harry’s fifth year to realize something that had probably been true for a long time: He wasn’t in charge anymore.

Oh, he was obviously in charge of Hogwarts and had many connections, but Harry and his closest friends — almost like Voldemort’s inner circle but in a very different way — had gathered together a group of adults that had quite a bit of influence in many different ways. They had the ear of a number of very useful people that not even Professor Dumbledore could touch, and they had used it to take hold of the reigns controlling the side of the war that was against Voldemort without him even noticing until it was too late.

Of course, just as he had finally realized this and was going to give Harry information on what he knew of Voldemort’s plans and actions, since he had already passed over the information on Voldemort’s history, Samuel and Daniella Davis had been murdered.

Professor Dumbledore had never seen Tracey Davis that devastated in her entire school career, and even Harry looked worse than he had on the night of the Third Task. At first it had been obvious they couldn’t accept it, _wouldn’t_ accept the truth, but then they had gone into the Pensieve with memories that Professor Dumbledore could only guess held the events that led to their deaths. When the pair had come out, Ms. Davis had been completely broken, and Harry hadn’t been far away from it, but Harry had held it together long enough to get them somewhere private.

The Headmaster had watched over the next two months as the grief of those two students affected the school like none had before, and it had been then that Professor Dumbledore had _truly_ accepted what he had figured out near the end of January: Harry Potter — and his closest friends, especially Ginny Weasley and Tracey Davis — truly meant something to the Hogwarts students.

Students of all ages and Houses gave comfort to the two grieving teens, returning to them what they had given to others throughout the school year. Everyone had banded together to make them talk and smile and laugh and enjoy themselves. It had brought a breeze of fresh air that one evening not far into April when the pair had pranked the tables in the Great Hall, easing the entire student body the moment they started laughing together, and Professor Dumbledore had seen even Minerva and Severus smiling slightly at the sight of the two teens and the prank.

Of course, this only brought more to the forefront of Professor Dumbledore’s mind, such as the students disappearing into the Room of Requirement for hours on end in different groups, and the new hierarchy that now obviously ran throughout the castle.

Professor Dumbledore could never get into the Room of Requirement when it was in use by the students of Hogwarts, which was almost constantly throughout the day until curfew. However, if he had to hazard a guess, he would say that the older students were tutoring the younger students and making them all do physical exercise, due to the obvious changes in physical appearances and grades in most classes. The Headmaster wouldn’t stop them from doing this either way, and it was obviously helping the entire school… except for four students who worried him as they were the only ones not included in this group that went into the Room of Requirement, and they never spoke to any outside their group. He had been keeping an eye on them all year, and he still didn’t know what to think of the four except that they most likely followed Voldemort.

Then, of course, was the hierarchy that had the entire staff baffled, to say the least. They could tell that Harry Potter was at the top of it, but from there it grew a bit complicated. From the other professors, Professor Dumbledore had learned a few things such as each House in every year seemed to have a student the others all looked up to, and these four students in every year appeared to be quite close and met up from time to time for only a few minutes before leaving again, having a quick conversation about something or other. He had also picked up from the gossip, though he would never call it that outside of his mind, of the other teachers that all of these specific students seemed to talk to Harry for those in their year and House, rather than everyone trying to talk to him.

Professor Dumbledore, on the other hand, had picked up a few things on his own that he had kept quiet about. From watching the students, he had seen that those Harry was closest to — including the Weasley twins before they left school — were looked to as the leaders of the school almost as much as he was, with Tracey Davis and Ginevra “Ginny” Weasley held in between those levels, most likely due to how close they were to Harry. The Headmaster had also seen the students writing notes or homework or in diaries and journals more often that he thought they normally would be, which drew his attention, but he couldn’t decipher why they were writing quite so often and had moved the thoughts deeper into his mind.

This then brought Professor Dumbledore’s thoughts back to one Mr. Harry James Potter.

After the young Slytherin had regained control of his emotions and had begun to smile a bit, Professor Dumbledore had begun inviting the young man to his office. During these weekly meetings, the professor had told Harry about what he knew of Voldemort’s movements, and the young man with a terrible burden on his shoulders listened intently, writing notes in a notebook that was quite obviously Muggle, as was the pencil he was writing with.

When the Headmaster had finished passing on his information of things such as possible raids and Death Eater numbers and vague plans only half made, Harry, in turn, passed on some information. What the young man knew about the war was astounding. He had obviously been very well informed by both Amelia and Samuel before Samuel’s unfortunate death on how the Aurors of the Ministry were being run because Harry knew that they kept a minimum of twenty Aurors on duty at all times, switching every eight hours. It also turned out that the Department of Mysteries had been working on charms to detect where the Death Eaters attacked, and there were wizards with orbs to call the Aurors if the Death Eaters attacked somewhere with a group of magical families in the area.

Harry also explained that the Aurors were now being trained in a new way, and what had once been two separate Auror Forces was now one, though where they trained was a carefully guarded secret under oaths and possibly even other spells so that not even Harry could disclose the location. He could, however, admit that Davis Manor had been the old headquarters for the Second Force after the Davises had moved elsewhere for their safety, and the reason the Davises had been there was to check up on the Force.

All in all, the exchange of information was excellent for both sides. Of course, Harry also requested that he work alongside Minister Amelia Bones rather than trying to control her or go around her, and Professor Dumbledore had decided to take the advice seriously and had had a serious conversation with Amelia over a cup of tea at her office. Both had left _that_ meeting pleased as Professor Dumbledore had been informed that Director Shacklebolt had instructions to call for the Order of the Phoenix if they were needed for a battle, and she had been assured that he was sharing information with Harry weekly and that the boy would pass it on in whatever way they used to communicate.

It had been a very busy school year for them, but it allowed the two sides fighting against Lord Voldemort to have an alliance of sorts. Now it was nearing the time for exams, and the school was getting very busy, which meant Professor Dumbledore would soon be flooded with paperwork.

With a deep sigh as he popped another lemon drop into his mouth, the Headmaster of Hogwarts stood to go pet his phoenix Fawkes, pushing aside thoughts of the war in preference to enjoying his sweet and familiar.

…

May came to Hogwarts and with it the exam craze. Seventh years, in preparation for their NEWTs, had so much homework that they spent only the necessary time for lessons in the Room of Requirement, using the rest to study in various areas of the school. Fifth years weren’t as bad, but they still spent a lot less time training. In comparison, the first years found themselves with quite a lot more free time as their lessons turned more towards revision of stuff they had learned so early on in the school year that they didn’t even have to think to do it, so they spent the majority of their time outside of classes in the Room. The other years were in between the two extremes, mostly dependent on how much homework the professors gave.

This was why, in the middle of May, Harry was found in one of the study rooms of The Den, textbooks surrounding him as he worked his way through an Ancient Runes essay written entirely in runes. Nearby, Tracey was struggling through Arithmancy with Theo asking her questions about his own Arithmancy homework every few minutes even though she was having almost as much trouble as he was. Ginny looked, to Harry, as if she was about to bang her head on the table or perhaps even the wall, unless she was too impatient and decided the floor was good enough for her.

“What’s wrong, Gin?” he asked, and she blinked as she looked up at him, shaking her head before letting out a mixture of sigh and growl.

"It's this Potions essay!" she exclaimed, throwing down her quill before flinging her arms into the air and throwing her head back in annoyance. Running her hands through her red hair, and leaving a bit of ink in it, she said, "Slughorn wants a four foot essay on three potions we've made this year with as much information as we can put about the potions in it. It feels like he's asking for the impossible. There just isn't that much information on a single potion!"

"Have you included information on the ingredients used into the potions themselves?" Harry questioned as the only one of the three NEWT students still in Potions, knowing without looking that Theo had a disgusted look on his face at the mere mention of his least favorite class and that Tracey was rolling her eyes at his childish actions.

Ginny froze and looked at Harry for a few moments before her face fell into her hands and began to shake left and right. "That is _so_ like Slughorn! He was testing us to see if we would think to add in the ingredients and how they react to make the potions, wasn't he?" Ginny looked up at him expectantly, and Harry nodded, quite used to this technique from his Head of House after six years of his class and many hours talking with him. "Most of my year wouldn't have even thought of doing that, which is how he weeds out those good at Potions and those not, right?"

"Pretty much," Harry agreed. "Most don't think about how ingredients react in Potions, which is why so many explode or do something else that's destructive, so those who think about it and add it into his essays show Professor Slughorn that they truly care about Potions and aren't in the class just because they have to be for one reason or another. Professor Snape was even trickier about it."

"And that is why Harry was his favorite student in our class once he got over his grudge," Theo said, dramatically sighing. "He was the only one who understood the motive behind Professor Snape's actions, finding very logical explanations for why he put up slightly incorrect instructions on the board or why he set the essays he did. It apparently makes Professor Slughorn utterly adore Harry."

“Not my fault I’m good at Potions and read as much about it as I could,” Harry reminded Theo with a shrug.

“And still do,” Theo muttered as he returned to his Arithmancy. Harry just rolled his eyes at his friend.

“Anyway, Gin, if you use this book, all the information you need on the ingredients is here,” Harry told his girlfriend as he pulled out a thin book from his bag with nothing but a cauldron on the worn, brown, leather cover.

“Thank you, Harry,” Ginny said with relief in her tone, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek before turning back to her work, opening the new resource.

Harry just lifted one side of his mouth before catching Tracey’s eyes for a moment, nodding slightly before returning to his homework. Tracey had been quiet again, and Harry knew it was because exams meant the end of term, and the end of term meant going back to a Marauder Manor without Samuel or Daniella there, which meant they would be having the funeral soon.

Shaking his head slightly to rid it of those darker thoughts, Harry returned to his Runes homework.


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two

It was at times like this, Harry thought to himself, that he wished he hadn’t taken the first and third weekends to join the mock-invasions.

At the moment, Harry was sitting in a side room with some of his friends, using monitors to watch as the different groups moved throughout the Room of Requirement, which had been set up to look like Hogwarts with Death Eaters invading. Both Tracey and Ginny were among those training today, though they were separated at the moment. At times, while sneaking through the castle, groups would meet up, and they had instructions to change their groups when they met up.

Out of the five-hundred Death Eaters that had “invaded” the castle, only a hundred remained, and they were in groups of four or less. Only thirteen of the hundred students running through this exercise had been taken out, and most had only been done in by very lucky shots or lack of room to dodge.

Now, as Harry and the others watched, a group of six students suddenly froze and turned to look down a secret passageway, where those watching knew Death Eaters were lurking. The six Disillusioned themselves and took positions around the entrance to the passageway, their wands trained on it. When the Death Eaters snuck out, they didn’t even have a chance to know what hit them before they were all Stunned, tied up, and disarmed.

“They’ve learned from those strategy sessions,” Hermione commented as the Death Eaters’ wands were quickly snapped before the six moved on.

“Which is why we have them,” Terry responded, and Harry could sense him nodding without even glancing in his direction.

“Well, this will be good practice for when Ron and his group take control of the training after exams,” Susan said. “Everyone will be used to the idea of working in the castle with an invasion, so all we’ll have to do is let Ron and the others direct us all on where to go. Not very hard.”

“It’ll be fun,” Daphne remarked, sounding a bit cheerful. “Weapons, wands, prank supplies… those training sessions will be controlled chaos — all of it against the Death Eaters.”

Internally, Harry agreed with a smirk, knowing that those training sessions beginning in three weeks would be great fun. Of course, they had one more week of revision before two weeks of exams — well, only one for those not taking OWLs and NEWTs, but they would all need that second week to recover — before they could enjoy it, but that was beside the point. For now, they were working on making training fun but very intense and educational, and it seemed to be working.

…

Harry groaned and threw his head back against the black couch he was sitting on, wishing he had something harder to bang it on. On the table in front of him — which had been conjured and charmed to float so that he could do his homework on it and moved when he pulled on it — was a pile of notes. Beside him on the couch were his numerous textbooks and extra resources. He had been studying from them all evening, his friends in similar positions all around the circle they had made in the Slytherin Common Room.

“If this is what we’ve got to study for _sixth_ year exams, I’m very afraid to find out what NEWTs will be like next year,” Harry stated as he ran his hands through his hair, drawing the attention of his friends. “It’ll be another year of information to look through, and the professors have said these are only practice NEWT tests…”

“I think we’re learning the reason they’re called Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests,” Blaise muttered darkly. “Just _studying_ for them is exhausting, and I’ve heard taking them is just as bad.”

“We should probably be stopping soon anyway,” Tracey commented while closing her Arithmancy textbook. “It’s almost ten, and we don’t want to be exhausted tomorrow during our actual exams.”

“True…” Harry said softly. “We probably should have stopped studying two hours ago. Doing this much studying the night before a test never works.”

“So we can go to bed, finally?” Draco asked, very relieved. He slammed his books shut without even waiting for a response, starting to make somewhat neat piles of his notes to put them away in his bag.

“Yes, we can go to bed, Draco,” Tracey said with a laugh while putting her own work away.

“ _Finally_!” Theo cheered, moving his floating desk, which was a somewhat thin piece of wood, to the side and moving over to give Tracey a kiss. Harry made an annoyed sound that made Tracey pull away to stick her tongue out at him before returning to her kiss. He just shook his head and began thinking of ways to get his revenge while turning back to putting his stuff away so he wouldn’t have to watch anymore.

“Who’s going to get on the Journals and order Hermione to go to bed?” Blaise wondered aloud, and everyone except Theo and Tracey turned to Harry, who grinned mischievously.

“Oi, Theo! Stop kissing my sister and tell Hermione to stop studying and go to bed,” he called, breaking up the kissing couple as they turned to look at him in disbelief.

“No way!” Theo exclaimed, raising his hands as if to ward something off. “I’m not doing that! She’ll kill me!”

Harry just smirked while the others laughed, realizing why he had done that. Tracey caught on quickly and rolled her eyes while groaning.

“Theo, he knew that,” she sighed. “He only said it to get us to stop. Come on, let’s leave Harry alone.” She stood and gave Theo one last kiss on the cheek before going up to bed, pulling Daphne with her.

Theo glared at Harry after the girls were gone, but he just grinned before pulling out his Journal to tell Hermione to stop studying. That in itself would take ten minutes, but at least he had gotten them to stop snogging in front of him.

…

Harry managed to remember as many Runes as he could the first morning of exams, filling out the paper without hesitation, though he did go back and read over what he had done to be sure it was done correctly.

While that exam was being taken, though, many of Harry’s friends were training in the Room of Requirement, enjoying their exam-free day because they took neither Ancient Runes nor Care of Magical Creatures, which was the afternoon exam. Fortunately, the small class had gotten quite a lot of learning done with their improvised lesson plans, and it was a piece of cake for them to do.

When he met his friends in the Room of Requirement just before dinner, Harry found most of them covered in sweat, covered in small cuts that dripped blood, and lying on the ground as they tried to regain their breath. He had raised an eyebrow before finding a seat and conjuring another wooden desk to use to study for his Potions exam the next morning.

Harry could only hope the other students were also using the Room of Requirement when not taking exams or revising because training sessions had been cancelled due to exams, but he had a feeling only the youngest years were. The older years, especially fifth and up, just had too much to study for their exams to take a break like that.

So Harry studied on his own for a bit until Daphne, Blaise, and Draco joined him, the four quizzing one another on potions, their ingredients, and how to make them. After dinner, when many of his friends were relaxing or studying for Herbology or Potions, Harry took out his weapons and trained with Death Eaters that the Room created for him in a separate room. That night, he fell into bed exhausted from his training, but it was the exhaustion that could only come from a good workout followed by a hot shower.

The next day, Harry and the others in his Potions class had to brew the Draught of Living Death from memory for Professor Slughorn, forcing one or two to try and remember all the way back to their first lesson, which was a very Slytherin thing for the Professor to do.

After that, Harry was quite pleased to have the rest of the day off from exams. Because he hadn’t taken Herbology, he had until the next afternoon to prepare for his Defense Against the Dark Arts exam, which was the one he was worried about the least, despite Professor Snape teaching it.

So Harry and his friends spent part of the afternoon in The Den, playing games and talking and laughing and acting like teenagers trying to forget about the upcoming exams for a few hours. The rest of the afternoon was spent by some studying for Arithmancy while the rest just ran through the spells Professor Snape had actually taught them that year in the Room of Requirement, Hermione quizzing them on the theory behind each one when she joined them before dinner.

To let off tension from their exams, everyone went into the Room of Requirement after supper was done and entered a side room that was a forest. Getting to run around in their Animagus forms was a huge relief for everyone, and the wrestling and running was fun as well as exhausting, allowing them to just collapse into bed that night.

That Wednesday, Harry got to have a bit of a lie in, and he took advantage of it, not rising until ten in the morning. A quick stop to the kitchen took care of his growling stomach, and he was in The Den, reading a Charms book, by the time his friends were finishing with the Arithmancy exam.

“Hardest exam so far,” was the consensus among those who had taken the exam, and the rest couldn’t argue because they hadn’t taken it, though Harry did mention that the Ancient Runes exam hadn’t been all that easy either.

After lunch, Professor Snape gave his sixth years a few questions to answer before he made them pair up and then duel one-by-one for five minutes to see how they had improved with non-verbals and the spells he had taught. Fortunately, five minutes wasn’t long enough for anyone to get so bored with magic-only that they began itching to duel like they did during HP training, but it made everyone realize how much better those duels were with so much variety in them. Harry had a feeling Professor Snape was surprised not only their dueling abilities but also by the fact that no one had won or lost, all of the duels still going strong when time was up.

That evening, after dinner, every sixth year in the Defense class was found in the Room of Requirement somewhere, all of them having real duels with weapons and magic used together and more space to move in and no holding back like they had during the exam. It had been an excellent release.

Thursday, both the Charms and the Transfiguration exams had a written portion followed by a practical portion after each student turned in their test. No one had any _real_ difficulty with the practical parts, but some of Harry’s classmates were arguing over small details before laughing as they realized the mistakes most likely wouldn’t make much of a difference.

Harry collapsed onto a couch in The Den after his Transfiguration exam, sighing in pure relief. He was finally done with his exams, as were all his friends, despite the Muggle Studies and Divination exams scheduled for the next day. They were finally done.

“ _Finally_ ,” was said by all as they relaxed after so much revision and work. It was exhausting stuff, taking exams, and they would welcome the week-long break while OWLs and NEWTs were being completed, even if they did drag some of the younger students into the Room of Requirement for extra practice if they wanted it.

“That… was awful,” Harry declared, and no one could argue with him, not even Hermione.

“It’s finally _done_!” Theo cheered, punching his fist into the air while some of the others laughed. “That went on _forever_.”

“Oi, don’t complain that much,” Harry grumbled. “Most of you didn’t have to take an exam every single day these past four days.”

“I did,” Daphne groaned, and Blaise and Draco muttered darkly in agreement. Theo seemed to realize he should be quiet since he had only had three days of exams, unlike many of his friends, who had had four.

“We’ll just rest tonight, and we can train tomorrow…” Tracey said, her eyes closed and her head resting on Theo’s shoulder with his arm around her. “Right now, I think I’m going to take a quick nap.”

No one could disagree with her, and that evening was spent playing games such as Risk and Go Fish and even some poker while some of the sixth years napped on various couches throughout The Den. Younger students played games as well, but they hadn’t been put through exams as tough as theirs, and many of them, mostly the first through third years, in fact, hadn’t had classes at all that week due to exams and would be having them next week. OWL and NEWT students were studying in the study rooms or the Room of Requirement, knowing they still had six more days to go.

After Harry was finished, however, he spent the rest of the time exams were going on training with anyone who was in the Room of Requirement, running around as a wolf, playing games in The Den, being dragged out to the Quidditch pitch for a pick-up match or football, and just enjoying himself. It made for an interesting eight days, but he enjoyed every one of them, especially when he managed to prank Hermione for trying to _already_ begin studying for their NEWTs in a year.

It seemed those two weeks went from being terribly slow while revising and being tested to astonishingly fast when he got to relax. In the end, however, all exams were done and everyone enjoyed the chance to relax that final weekend of term. They were all looking forward to the fake invasions that they were going to begin Monday morning at ten.

Of course, something had to happen to put a slight pause to everything…

…

“Tonight we attack, not to run away at the sight of the Aurors and Dumbledore’s Order of the Phoenix, but to distract them all from our real goal, so go, and do not run when the enemy appears,” Lord Voldemort ordered his Death Eaters, and they obediently Disapparated to their destination.

…

Harry woke quite suddenly in the early hours of Monday morning. He didn’t know what had woken him so sharply, his blood pumping with adrenaline and his senses on high alert, but it didn’t take him long to figure it out.

Crabbe and Goyle were moving around, trying not to make as much noise as they normally did, and it had sent his senses running. They never acted like this, so what was going on? Something was up, and he needed to know what.

Still, Harry remained lying on his side with his eyes closed as they left the room. However, rather than head towards the Common Room like he had expected, the boys were headed towards where the seventh years slept this year.

Harry sat up quickly and quickly placed his glasses on his face. His wand holster was soon on his arm, and he quickly had Slytherin’s Dagger on his left arm, his belt a green bracelet on his left arm already, custom-made sword in the metal buckle. Another dagger was quickly strapped to his right thigh as he moved and silently woke up his friends. They all woke up instantly, their eyes shining as they took in the sight of him, ready for a fight if need be.

Suddenly, Harry’s ears picked up on thumps hitting the ground in the seventh years’ room, and he heard muffled cries of pain before his Journal heated up. Pulling it out, he saw that one of the seventh years was sending a warning to him. Before he could do anything else, a female Slytherin seventh year also sent a warning.

Harry quickly warmed up every single Journal with the following message, written with an almost silent whisper to make it faster: _Slytherin dorms under attack. Slytherins: prepare yourselves and pretend to be asleep. Number of attackers unknown. Listen carefully. Everyone else: Weapons in hand, a seventh year in every dorm, disillusioned. Where the attackers are is unknown, but the guess is they’re the four Slytherin students not with us. There may be more. Full alert. Be prepared._

Harry’s friends read their own Journals and realized what was going on. They all quickly got their weapons on before slipping back into bed. Harry kept his glasses on and faced away from the door to their dorm, pretending to be asleep and keeping his breathing even despite his adrenaline and pounding heart. No one had tried to answer his message, which told Harry they had listened to his orders.

Soon, he heard the quieter-than-normal-but-still-loud footsteps of Crabbe and Goyle returning down the hallway. The door to their dorm silently opened, only the moving air giving it away, and Harry tensed before forcing himself to relax, listening to their footsteps. A wand was being moved in the air, and suddenly Draco let out a scream as the coppery scent of blood was in the air.

Spinning around, Harry quickly lit up the torches on the walls and took in the sight of Draco holding his right hand over a deep cut on his stomach, his gray eyes full of pain as they met Harry’s. Before either boy could move, loud footsteps were heard charging to the sixth year boys’ dorm, and the door burst open.

So many spells hit the two boys that Harry would have felt sorry for them if they hadn’t been attacking his friends, their own Housemates. They were both tied up with a large number of ropes, their wands had been completed shattered by the spells that had hit them, they had some cuts on their bodies, they were unconscious from multiple Stunners, and both had been hexed and jinxed with so many spells that Harry couldn’t count them all. Harry, Draco, Blaise, and Theo had been among those to curse them, of course, their wands still pointed at them with fury written on their faces.

“Harry!” Tracey called as she fought her way into the dorm, and the boys moved to let her through. “Parkinson and Bulstrode were attacking the girls’ dorms,” she told her close friends. “Many of them are bleeding and are being healed by some of the girls.”

“Anyone in the healing sessions, go to the seventh year boys and heal all of them,” Harry ordered. “I heard muffled screams of pain before these two came here.” A few boys were heard running down the hall a bit further in moments. “The rest of you lot, into the Common Room!”

After the boys had left, Harry and the other three boys stood and pulled on their cloaks over their sweatpants and T-shirts, which had become their normal night clothes long ago when Sirius had been bored after their third year and decided to start a war game in the middle of the night. Tracey was given one of Harry’s spare cloaks to wear, and together, the five of them levitated the two large boys out into the Common Room, leaving them as they were.

In the Common Room, they were met with all of Slytherin House sitting all around the room in cloaks and various types of night clothes, all of them glaring at Crabbe, Goyle, Parkinson, and Bulstrode. The two girls had been attacked just as viciously and had been levitated in by Daphne, Astoria, and Maya after attacking Daphne and Tracey.

Draco was being looked after by some of the healers in the group, and they also checked over Daphne, who hadn’t been cut, only hexed.

The four attackers were dumped on the floor in the middle of the Common Room as everyone stared at them. No one in the room was afraid, just angry and upset. They had all known these four didn’t agree with the uniting of the Houses, but to go as far as attacking their own Housemates because of it? Everyone knew that if it hadn’t been for Harry’s warning, many more in their House could have been hurt, perhaps even their friends in other Houses. As it was, the seventh years and Draco were all being quickly brewed Blood-Replenishing Potions by Blaise, because they had had some pretty terrible cuts in their bodies.

“Harry, you need to see this,” Tracey called from over where she was looking at the seventh years, and he quickly walked over, only to suck in his breath with a hiss.

She was showing him the left arms of the seventh years, and each one had a burn in the shape of a snake on their arms. They weren’t the Dark Mark, but _bloody hell_ , they were snakes in the exact same place as that mark. Those burns also looked permanent, but Harry just called to Blaise, “Make some burn paste and skin restorative as well, Blaise!”

When he saw Blaise’s return nod, Harry pulled Tracey with him as he made his way over to his four Housemates. With his wand, he cut away the ropes on Parkinson’s left arm and ripped off her sleeve. Her arm had no Dark Mark on it, but he hadn’t really expected it. These four had been obviously working on Voldemort’s orders, but this was their assignment to earn themselves his Mark. Unless they had succeeded, they weren’t important enough to have his Mark, and it was also a danger to have it with Professor Dumbledore in charge of the school.

Disgusted with them, Harry put fresh ropes around her to tie Parkinson’s arm back up before turning away from them. The other Slytherins realized why he had done this, and it just made them even more furious as they realized under whose orders they had been acting.

“Trace, look at the Mischief Map and make sure no one else is out of the dorms,” he asked her quietly, and she quickly pulled out her Journal.

“Maya, Brandon, go find our Head of House,” Harry ordered the two younger Prefects, and they nodded before quickly leaving the Common Room. “Tom, Martha, Graham, and Astoria, go find the other Professors,” he told the other leaders. “Slughorn, Flitwick, McGonagall, and Sprout. Make sure one of them gets the Headmaster.” They all left at a full-out run, and Harry knew they’d be at a different office in less than two minutes flat.

“Some of you from fifth year, I don’t care who, go get their trunks and everything they own,” Harry said, glaring at the four Voldemort followers. “The professors will want to search them. Don’t touch anything, and use magic to pack the lot up.” All the fifth years disappeared down to the dorms. Tracey shook her head in his direction when he glanced at her, and he nodded in understanding.

With that done, Harry pulled out his Journal and placed the pencil in place after setting it to send a message to all three of the other Houses.

_Parkinson, Bulstrode, Crabbe, and Goyle have been caught attacking the Slytherins. No one else is in the castle. Stay in your dorms and pretend to sleep, but keep alert just in case. The professors are being notified as I say this, but the danger appears to be gone. Just be careful._

The Slytherins took in his words in silence, just waiting for the professors. Their wait wasn’t long as, just after Harry had put his Journal back on the leather cord around his neck, the entrance to the Common Room opened and all requested professors except for the Headmaster appeared, the Slytherins behind them and panting.

“What happened in here?” Professor Snape demanded of his Slytherins, looking furious.

“Sir, I was woken up by the sound of Crabbe and Goyle moving around differently from normal, and they went to the seventh year boys’ dorm. Not long after, I heard thumps and muffled yells, so I woke up the rest of my dorm, and we pretended to sleep until they returned. When they did, one of them attacked Draco, cutting his stomach deeply, and his yell brought the rest of the boys into the dorm. We all attacked them. Not long after, Tracey ran into the dorm to tell us that Parkinson and Bulstrode had done the same in the girls’ dorms. I ordered everyone into the Common Room, and we revived and healed the seventh years and Draco.”

Right at that moment, Blaise moved to where those recently healed were and gave them the Blood-Replenish Potions before motioning to the seventh years to show him their left arms. Wincing at the burns, he put the burn cream on them, and as he, the seventh years, the professors, and Harry watched, the burns turned into scars slowly over the next five minutes, silence prevailing in the room. After that, Blaise put the skin restorative cream on the scars, and they healed to the point that they were barely noticeable over the next few minutes.

“As you can see, Blaise quickly began making healing potions and creams while the rest of us sent for you and got their belongings together without touching them,” Harry continued. “None of them have the Dark Mark, but I know that they did this on _his_ orders because of those snakes they burned onto the seventh years’ arms. There’s no other reason for it. This is a message from _him_ to us here in Slytherin that he’s upset because none of us follow him.”

Harry fell silent, and all of the students waited for the reactions of their professors.

…

Professor Dumbledore had not been having a very good evening. At around midnight, he had gotten a distress call from Kingsley, requesting the Order assist the Aurors in fighting Death Eaters who weren’t running at the sight of the Ministry, for once. So he had had to spend the next hour and a half assisting the Aurors with the Death Eaters, capturing as many as he could.

Then, when he returned to Hogwarts, a Patronus in the shape of a doe rushed into his office, and the voice of Severus Snape said, “Slytherins under attack. Come quickly.”

Unfortunately, Professor Dumbledore had gotten a Floo call from Amelia that had to be answered at that very moment about the attack, so it took him twenty minutes to arrive at the dungeon Common Room to find it deathly silent.

“Someone, please tell me what happened here,” he said, and Harry Potter informed him, quite obviously repeating the story for a second time.

Professor Dumbledore couldn’t help but notice the dark looks in the eyes of the Slytherins, even the first years, as they looked upon their four Housemates who had dared to attack their own. They were, quite rightly, feeling betrayed, and it showed on their faces and in their eyes.

The Headmaster also noted some very interesting things mentioned, but he didn’t bring any of it up as he listened carefully. It interested him that the students had healed the wounds and had been able to move so quickly that they were in the dorms in just moments of young Draco Black’s screams, but he made no comment on the points.

“Minerva, Pomona, Filius, please go check on your Houses, and Severus, help your Slytherins,” Professor Dumbledore decided. “Horace, if you could assist me with these four, we’ll take them to the Hospital Wing, where I’ll bring the Aurors so they may question them.”

Professor Slughorn quickly levitated the four from the room while Professors McGonagall, Sprout, and Flitwick followed to head to their Houses. Severus Snape stayed in the Common Room and began by checking over those attacked by his four students before moving on, only to find certain students with each year of his House. Professor Dumbledore watched as Misters Nott, Zabini, Vaisey, Pritchard, and Harper began going around the students with Misses Greengrass, Pritchard, Jones, and Davis. Mr. Potter was just watching it all, smiling gently at the younger Slytherins and exchanging nods with the elder.

It was most certainly an interesting sight to see, and it appeared the Slytherins had their own House covered, so Professor Snape followed Professor Dumbledore to the Hospital Wing, where they knew they would be expelling four Slytherins for this. The students would take care of themselves.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good replacement for Draco’s attack in canon? Not as effective, but I felt Voldemort would want to send a message to the “traitors” in Slytherin, perhaps scare some of them onto his side by showing that not even Harry and Dumbledore could keep them safe in their own dorms.


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three

After the attack, not a single student in Hogwarts went back to sleep. When dawn came, all four Houses were completely dressed with their weapons hidden on their person and sitting in their Common Rooms. At exactly seven o’clock, the whole school made its way to the Great Hall for breakfast, many with circles under their eyes and all of them tense.

Breakfast was a quiet affair with only whispering heard throughout the room, intermixed with the sound of cutlery scraping against plates and bowls, and goblets hitting the wooden tables. The Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws were able to reassure themselves that their Slytherin friends were all healthy and healed or unharmed, though all could see that they were quite upset by what had occurred.

When Professor Dumbledore entered the Hall, he picked up on the tension and quickly made his way to the front of the room. Everyone fell silent as he stood there, obviously about to make an announcement.

“For those of you who do not know, four sixth year Slytherins attacked their fellow students last night, only to be subdued by others in their House,” he told the Hall. “The four in question were questioned by Aurors and found to be working for Lord Voldemort, and they have been expelled and escorted away to Ministry holding cells. Those they harmed have been healed and looked over by Madam Pomfrey, who found them to be in good health due to quick actions by some of the elder Slytherins. I award Slytherin House one-hundred points for its quick actions last night. Please, enjoy your last week of term, and do not allow this to ruin your end of term plans.”

The Headmaster took his seat, and the whispers returned.

…

“Hey, Harry,” Ron said as he sat down across from the Slytherin before he could leave to go up to the Room of Requirement. “When are we going to do this?”

“I thought we would postpone it until tomorrow,” Harry admitted. “After last night…”

“Well, I’ve had a number of students come up and tell me they’re looking forward to it, especially now.”

“Harry, it will probably help to continue with it,” Tracey told him. “It will help relieve the tension from earlier.”

“And it will distract them quite well,” Ginny added.

Harry sighed and nodded. “We’ll start in an hour, but they’re so tired…” Harry looked around at the students and saw exhaustion in their eyes and bodies, though they were quite obviously fighting it. Most had only gotten three or four hours of sleep at the most before the attack and hadn’t slept since.

“Those who came up to me mentioned that they know attacks could happen at any time,” Ron quickly brought up. “They know it could happen when they’re getting ready for bed, have had a long day, or it could happen in the middle of the night like last night… The consensus is that doing this now, when they’re so tired, will allow them to learn their limits and recognize the various environments they’ll have to fight in, including the state of their bodies.”

“It’s true, Harry, and last night only proved it, as have the raids by Death Eaters,” Euan mentioned, his face grim, and Harry knew he was thinking of the past summer and how the attack had occurred not long before he would have been heading to sleep.

“Good points all around,” Harry admitted. “Tell the students we’ll start in an hour.”

…

They all slid in and out of the shadows, moving through the corridors of the castle they knew so very well. In teams of four, randomly given, the Hogwarts Protectors did what their name stated.

Harry was working alongside a first year Hufflepuff, a third year Ravenclaw, and a seventh year Slytherin. They didn’t speak to one another except to whisper plans right at the beginning, deciding upon hand signals and who would do what. Once they had the very basics down, they didn’t really need anything more, not after so much time doing this sort of thing.

Then, Harry heard a sound from the passageway to their left, and he froze, knowing the others would do the same at just a slight change of movement from him, just as he would have done had one of them detected something. When they were all glancing at him, Harry made a slight gesture with his left hand before making two fists in front of him, moving them apart quickly. They all spread out around the entrance, the seventh and first year on either side while he and the third took to the wall across from the corridor, Disillusionment Charms on all four of them. A silencing ward had been raised around that portion of the corridor as well so that no one would come running.

A group of ten Death Eaters snuck out of the passage without checking to see where they were going or if anyone else was there, and that was their downfall.

The first year threw a small ball into the middle of the group, Stunning five of them in one go thanks to the twins. With the distraction, the seventh year Stunned another two. Harry and the third year then sent out three sets of ropes each, tripping up the other three as they tried to run, getting Stunned almost immediately after. Wands were then summoned and broken by the first year as Harry and the other two tied up the rest and stuck them to the wall, making them invisible. Once the corridor was cleaned of any marks from the battle and the silencing ward dropped, it appeared as if nothing had happened. The four just moved on.

…

Hermione shared a look with Susan, the second year Gryffindor, and the fifth year Slytherin as they spotted ten Death Eaters stuck invisibly to the wall, their wands gone. She and Susan rolled their eyes, recognizing Harry’s style in this, and gestured for the other two to keep moving down the corridor. This was the third time they had seen something like this so far. For the most part, defeated Death Eaters were shoved into piles in secret passageways or in alcoves, always invisible, but Harry had a tendency for enjoying leaving something in plain sight without it being spotted. It amused and annoyed Hermione to no end, quite often.

Bangs suddenly echoed throughout the castle coming from the Great Hall, and Hermione wasn’t sure what to think. According to the plan the strategists had come up with, those in teams of four scouring the castle should ignore the large battles and find the smaller teams of Death Eaters, but sometimes the noises were so very distracting and tempting… _No_ , a quiet voice in Hermione’s mind snarled harshly. _Follow the plan and don’t mess this up. When the real battle comes along, you’ll be near the front, and you know it. They wouldn’t keep you, Hermione Granger, away from it._

Susan used her wand to check the corner they were about to turn and instantly stiffened, which warned Hermione that Death Eaters were right in front of them. The second year Gryffindor made sure to be Disillusioned before looking around the corner, quickly moving forward while removing the charm.

“Oh, it’s only you lot,” Lavender Brown, Hermione’s roommate, whispered in relief as she, Padma, a first year Slytherin, and a fourth year Hufflepuff came around the corner. “Thought you were more Death Eaters.”

Hermione shot Padma a confused look, and her Ravenclaw friend gestured to a small alcove where three Death Eaters were just barely visible past the Disillusionment Charm on them. Before anyone could reply, however, footsteps came from behind Hermione, who realized the number of people sounded close to fifteen, meaning Death Eaters. She and Padma shared a quick look and a few hand signals before Hermione translated the plan into the signals her group had agreed on, Padma doing the same.

She, Padma, and Susan Disillusioned themselves and stepped into the middle of the corridor, watching the Death Eaters make their way towards them. Without looking, Hermione could hear the other five moving quickly to get into position just around the corners, most likely with smoke-and-explosion balls in hand. Lavender had been assigned the task of silencing the area as well, so that was covered.

Just as the Death Eaters got into attack range, Hermione and her two close friends raised their wands, each launching a Stunner. Small, metal balls were thrown around the corner after that, exploding with smoke and sound the moment they hit the stone ground. The moment that happened, Hermione began firing Stunners and ropes into the smoke, thumps and screams signaling that they had hit, just as those launched by Susan and Padma were. A few spells were sent out of the smoke towards them, but the other five behind the trio of girls shielded their comrades easily.

When the smoke dissipated, all of the Death Eaters were on the ground, either Stunned or tied up or both. Those not tied up quickly were, and those not Stunned were almost immediately unconscious. Wands were summoned and broken into pieces before being completely blasted apart and Vanished. The Death Eaters were hidden away in a secret room behind a tapestry, Disillusioned.

Once that was taken care of, the eight Hogwarts Protectors cleaned up the corridor and took down the silencing ward before splitting back into their groups and going their separate ways.

…

Just over two hours of the simulation had passed when a bell rang throughout the “castle,” informing the students that all of the Death Eaters had been defeated. A few moments later, the Room of Requirement was back in its normal form of the training rooms. Water bottles provided by both Marauder Manor and Hogwarts’ elves were quickly passed around and drained as everyone collapsed onto chairs and couches and beanbags and even just the ground itself, many looking worse-for-wear.

Harry, who was with his closest friends and Ron in a secret room provided by the Room of requirement, drained the last of three water bottles with a tired sigh. He was standing next to a long window situated above the students that they couldn’t see, allowing the group to see their fellow classmates.

Many of the students, most likely those from the other teams scouring the castle, were just mildly tired due to lack of sleep on top of moving around so constantly for so long. Some, however, were being healed by the healers of the group for cuts and even a few broken bones, some even being given a potion or two. The rest were somewhere in between, exhausted from the fights and lack of sleep but also needing some light healing from battle wounds. Those in the latter two groups were most likely those who had been close to the larger battle that had taken place in the Entrance and Great Halls.

However, despite how their bodies felt, Harry could tell from the various smiles and the conversations taking place that everyone was pleased with the exercise and had enjoyed it. They had that look about them that said they couldn’t wait to do this again.

“So, how’d we do?” Draco asked Ron curiously. The redhead had been the only one not participating in the battle so that he could watch how it went.

“Those in the main battle fought well, though many were Stunned or hurt, while everyone going around the castle had good tactics and did well,” Ron reported. “None of those in the smaller groups got Stunned, and only a small handful got hurt at all, mostly due to larger numbers against them. Overall, it was well done. There are a lot of ways to improve, of course, but that’s what the rest of this week and next year are for, right?”

“Of course,” Hermione agreed. “What we learn works over the next week will just influence what we end up doing next year during training.”

“At least they enjoy the idea of doing this sort of thing,” Harry muttered under his breath, still looking out at the students rather than his friends. “If they didn’t, this training would only make the atmosphere caused by the war outside the castle even worse…”

No one else heard this muttered words, and Harry couldn’t help but be grateful that they couldn’t. They didn’t need his darker way of thinking after all he had seen and gone through so far. Still, as he looked out at his classmates and friends, he couldn’t help but picture what they would look like after a _real_ invasion on Hogwarts with deaths involved, despite fighting what his imagination was bringing up. If asked to describe it, Harry would have only been able to shake his head and say that it was something he never wanted to see if it was anything like was he was imagining.

…

Harry sat calmly in the seat across from Professor Dumbledore, almost slumped, calmly twirling his wand between his fingers in his right hand while waiting to find out why he had been called here. There were just two more full days of term with the third the day they rode the train home, and he had things he could be doing, such as another round of training in the Room of Requirement. The training had been going quite well, and the strategies created by Ron and the others were most certainly helpful and well thought out.

However, Harry had been wondering when he’d be called up here to talk with the Headmaster. After the attack on Slytherin, he had only been expecting it, especially with the level of magic obviously shown in the House of snakes.

“How has Slytherin recovered from the events of Sunday night?” Professor Dumbledore asked, calmly plopping a lemon drop into his mouth.

“They’re still angry with those four for betraying us,” Harry replied with a shrug, catching his wand with his index and ring fingers on one side and middle on the other, holding it still. “Other than that? Relieved that we stopped them before anyone could be permanently injured. After all that’s happened this past year outside of the castle, we’ve all learned that healable injuries are preferable to the alternatives.” Harry began spinning his wand again as he fell silent, waiting for the Professor to react.

“No one is frightened?” the older man asked, his voice just barely showing his surprise. Harry could only shrug, but he knew the Headmaster wanted an explanation, so he sighed before giving one, sitting up and grasping his wand properly.

“Out of everyone in the _entire_ school, those four were the only ones not going along with uniting the Houses.” Harry shook his head sadly. “The seventh years in my House watched them closely, and the rest of the school knew to be careful around them. We didn’t know if they were on Voldemort’s side or just neutral. Their attacking us was evil and scary at the time, but once we got over the shock, it wasn’t really a surprise. Even the first years know that the rest of the students in the school won’t attack them. There’s no reason to be afraid.” Harry finished by spinning his wand around once more, completing the movement by sliding it into his wand holster, just watching the Headmaster for his reaction.

“It is sad that you all see it like this, but at least no one is allowing the attack to frightened them,” Professor Dumbledore finally said sadly, and Harry had to fight back a snort. This man had no idea what these students knew. Euan had told his story to everyone after Christmas, once he had gotten over some of the trauma, so some of these so-called “kids” knew more than even some adults about what the Death Eaters could do. However, they also knew that their training would allow them to fight the Death Eaters, to survive them, to defeat them, even.

“Harry, I do have to ask for a few questions,” Professor Dumbledore continued, and Harry nodded encouragingly. “How did the students learn the healing spells necessary to heal some of the wounds your fellow Slytherins were given? The seventh years could not heal themselves, and while I could understand it if it had been you and Ms. Davis healing them, you implied those who had done the healing were others.”

“Samuel, Daniella, Sirius, and Remus _did_ teach Tracey, some of my friends, and me how to heal a year or two back, and we learned more when we felt the need,” Harry admitted, omitting a few names of those who had taught them. “When the other students, mostly fifth year and above, asked to learn healing spells, we taught them. They wished to be able to heal themselves in case of an attack — and to be able to stay away from the hospital wing at all costs. Between you and me, Madam Pomfrey is too strict and could do with listening to her patient at times. We know when we’re feeling well enough to talk to our friends or do our work or leave the wing, but she doesn’t listen and rarely, if ever, allows friends to visit to distract us from the pain and boredom.”

Professor Dumbledore chuckled lightly and nodded. “It’s very good that you taught your classmates to heal, though I do wish they had no reason to learn. However, in present times, the ability to heal friends, loved ones, and yourself is quite important, as is knowing how to fight well enough to escape.” Harry inclined his head sadly in agreement.

“Now, Harry, where have you and the other students taken to disappearing to?” Professor Dumbledore asked genially. “Many of the staff are worried you’re planning to destroy the school or some silly thing like that, especially because everyone is disappearing for hours at a time, leaving the school too quiet for their tastes.”

“Why, Professor, I thought you knew!” Harry replied cheerfully, laughing a bit. “We’re in the Room of Requirement, celebrating the end of term and exams! It’s a wonderful room for a party if you can convince some of the house-elves to bring you snacks and drinks because we can change the room at any time to have what we wish during the parties. There’s been quite a lot of snogging and dancing and laughing and enjoyment in the room. If the Professors wish, we would love to have you with us tomorrow night for the Friday evening party! We were planning on having another dance contest and playing both Muggle and Magical games.”

“I shall have to inform the staff,” Professor Dumbledore noted with a laugh, obviously enjoying the excitement Harry was showing. Of course, they were doing no such thing, but the invitation for the next evening was genuine as that was, in fact, a planned party for the school. The cover story had been thought up by Harry and his friends Monday evening when they realized they might be asked this very question sometime during the week.

“If there’s nothing else, Draco wants to use the various Quidditch teams to set off some of Fred and George’s fireworks in a bit,” Harry suggested, and the Headmaster nodded, waving his hand with a smile on his face. “I’ll see you later, Professor.”

…

Harry made faces that brought out bursts of laughter from Ginny as Theo and Tracey kissed not too far away from them. When Theo showed Harry the finger behind Tracey’s back, the pair actually fell off the couch laughing, their Butterbeers disappearing and reappearing on a nearby table before they could hit the ground and either spill or break. Tracey had actually pulled away from Theo to see what was so funny and to make sure they were all right.

Around them, the Room of Requirement looked like one huge ballroom except with a lot of couches and comfortable chairs. Tables along the walls were covered in snacks of all types with one for just sweets and another for cake and other such puddings while a third had purely drinks and the last had everything else. In the middle of the room was a large dance floor, where some of the Muggle-born kids were showing how Muggles danced compared to the more formal dancing the Wizarding World was used to. At tables around the room, games of all types were being played. Harry was certain he saw at least seven different games that involved cards and money, three of them confirmed as poker.

Many of the couples had taken to either snogging in plain sight, slipping into alcoves around the room between the tables, or creating their own rooms to disappear into. Blaise and Daphne had disappeared over an hour ago, and Harry could see two blond heads disappearing into another newly-created room that disappeared right after the door closed — Draco and Astoria. But, of course, Tracey and Theo wouldn’t dare give up a chance to snog in front him, so they were seated on a nearby couch, purposely trying to drive him insane.

“Tracey, Theo, just get the hell out of here,” Ginny told them through her laughter, “ _before_ you drive Harry to such insanity that he attacks the both of you.”

“ _Fine_ ,” Tracey sighed loudly, sounding put-upon. She stood quickly and pulled Theo up, walking over to a brand new door and entering it, giving Harry and Ginny one last wink before closing the door, a smirk on her face.

“Thank you,” Harry told Ginny in relief while consciously trying to _not_ think of what that pair might get up to in that room alone.

“Of course,” Ginny replied with her own smirk, and Harry shook his head at her tone before looking around again.

Professor Dumbledore was offering his favorite lemon drops to students by the sweet table with a smile, and Professor Flitwick was taking requests for charming something for the students, even changing clothes to be more “festive.” Professor Sprout was talking happily on a nearby couch with some of her seventh year Hufflepuffs, and Professor Slughorn was in a corner of the room, talking with some of the students with better-known family members. Harry could have sworn he saw Professors Snape and McGonagall looking in on the party here and there, most likely staying away because they knew that, while neither was truly disliked, they weren’t the favorite professors to have at a party with their known strictness.

The students were having fun, no matter what age. No one was thinking about the war right now, just enjoying the party and the chance to be their age and have fun. Not even the seventh years, who would be giving up their Journals the next morning, were upset or worried about having to begin their lives outside of Hogwarts. It was a wonderful sight to behold.

“What are you thinking about?” Ginny asked, and Harry turned to grin at her.

“The fact that everyone is having fun,” he replied honestly, and she smiled at his words. “Of course, I do believe I’ve been ignoring you more than I should be…”

And before Ginny could protest, Harry kissed her gently. He pulled away before she could even react to the kiss, making her pout until he pulled her up to her feet along with him, gently pulling her to a newly-formed room. Both of them grinned as they left the main party, knowing they were going to enjoy themselves privately.

…

Sunday morning, trunks were packed and the seventh year Journals had been returned. Weapons were carefully concealed on every student, just in case. Hogwarts was ready to leave for the summer.

After a final breakfast where everyone managed to say goodbye to the seventh years, many promising to write, the students made their way to the carriages or boats. It didn’t take very long to reach the train station, where luggage and pets were quickly found and put into various compartments. Goodbyes were yelled from windows and across the Hogsmeade station as close groups of friends found one another, leaving their other friends or acquaintances to find their own groups to sit with.

The Prefects had already been given their orders for patrols, so there was no Prefect meeting on the way home. Everyone just made themselves comfortable, some even expanding their compartments and transfiguring the seats into better ones. Harry and his closest friends were among those who did.

Harry could only sigh in relief as he leaned back against his slightly inclined seat, his eyes closed as he ran his fingers through Ginny’s hair, her head resting against his chest. It had been a busy and emotional school year for all of them, and this summer wasn’t going to be any easier. They were returning to the last place they had seen Samuel and Daniella back around Christmas, and it was going to be hard. Still, this was why they had each other to lean on, and they would help one another.

“Fleur mentioned that she and Bill and Tonks are going to try and get Mum to let Ron and me go to Muggle London, which means letting us come to the Manor,” Ginny commented to break the relaxed silence, her hand unconsciously rising to where the leather cord that held her Journal around her neck was.

“That will make Harry _much_ more bearable and less tense this summer,” Theo teased, and Harry growled at his friend, adding in a glare for good measure. “Oi, I’m only joking, Harry!”

“It’s not funny, Theo,” Tracey informed him while hitting him upside the head, hard, and scowling at her boyfriend. Theo looked quite apologetic after that, but Harry ignored him and looked out the window instead.

“Lay off of him, Theo, especially today,” Astoria stated tensely, and Harry could see her looking between him and Tracey worriedly through the reflection on the window. Theo’s face suddenly looked worried and a bit horrified as everything hit him, and Harry rolled his eyes.

“ _Hey, calm down, he was only playing around,_ ” Ginny hissed quietly, and Harry turned to look into her brown eyes, which were shining with understanding and sadness and her own pain. “ _You know how Theo can be. Reminds me of Ron sometimes, truthfully._ ” Harry snorted, thinking of how both boys had no tact at times, saying things they really shouldn’t.

“ _It’s just… hard, being reminded of this again,_ ” Harry admitted quietly, turning to look out the window again. “ _Theo’s jokes aren’t really making it easier._ ”

“ _Yes, but you and Tracey won’t be alone, Harry. Please, enjoy the train ride, and try your best to enjoy the summer. It’s what Samuel and Daniella would have wanted._ ”

Letting out a sigh, Harry nodded and reached a hand into one of his many pouches. Pulling out a deck of cards and a bag of coins, Harry shook his hand so the sound of coins jangling caught the other’s attention.

“Anyone interested in a game?”

As many others in the compartment went to find their money bags and Hermione conjured a card table for them, Harry just knew that this summer would range from training to painful memories to distractions, but they would survive. They always did.

 


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four

It was weird being back here, Harry decided as he stood in the Entrance Hall of Marauder Manor, still with his cloak around him and his shoes on. Draco, Daphne, Euan, Astoria, Theo, Tracey, and Susan also stood there with him.

The room appeared exactly as it had just months before, yet there was something in the atmosphere that was distinctly different, and they all knew the cause.

Without Samuel and Daniella there, everyone staying in the Manor had been feeling tense, sad, angry, upset, and so much more, all of it grief. While the Manor might be the same, the feelings and tension in the air changed the entire place. It would take a while to get used to it and try and cheer up the place a bit, most likely with pranks.

Looking at Tracey, Harry knew she agreed with him on the thought that it didn’t help the tension that neither of her parents had been at the platform to pick them up this year. At least Daniella, if not also Samuel, had always been there with Sirius and Remus — even before the two men had joined the family. Since the end of first year, the sight of them had always greeted the pair, and now they were gone… It would take getting used to, because it was one thing to know they were gone while away from them and another to have evidence of it right in front of them.

With a sigh, Harry kicked off his shoes and hung up his cloak, leading the way up the stairs to put their things away. Only Susan wouldn’t be staying the night because she would be Flooing home to see her parents for a couple of weeks before returning to stay with her aunt and friends. To the rest of them, this was their home until the war was over, and even beyond that for some.

Instead of going to his own room, Harry followed Tracey into hers, taking a seat on her bed as she began unpacking her trunk by hand rather than by magic. She probably needed the manual labor to distract herself. Harry left her to it, just laying back on her bed and closing his eyes, listening to the sounds she made to distract himself, both comfortable in the silence.

“I miss them,” Tracey suddenly admitted, stopping her unpacking. Harry opened his eyes and moved so that he was facing her, leaning on his elbow. “I mean, Hogwarts was one thing, but this is _home_ to us, and they aren’t here…”

“It didn’t fully sink in until we came to a place they were always at,” Harry offered quietly, knowing she just couldn’t find the words around her emotions.

“No, it didn’t,” Tracey sighed, walking over to him and settling down where his head had been after he sat up quickly. “And it hurts terribly to realize it.”

Harry scooted closer to Tracey as he realized she was holding back tears, wrapping her up in a hug. This was why he had followed her rather than going to unpack himself. He had known after seeing her face downstairs that she was barely holding herself together between the lack of her parents picking them up and feeling the atmosphere in Marauder Manor.

“Why did they have to die?” she asked quietly as tears began to fall down her face. Tracey moved her head so that it was in the crook of Harry’s neck, wrapping her own arms around him to complete the hug.

“I don’t know, Trace, I really don’t…” Harry sighed sadly. “But I think everything happens for a reason. If my parents hadn’t died, most of the Wizarding World would most likely be gone, and I wouldn’t have been Sorted into Slytherin, not with the Marauders helping to raise me. Things would be so very different if some things never happened. I wish they hadn’t died, but there’s nothing we can do about it now except try to live the lives they would have wanted us to.”

By then, Harry’s own tears were falling down his face and onto Tracey’s head even as her sobs subsided, leaving two wet trails on her cheeks as she pulled away to look at him. Her blue eyes were darker again, though nowhere near as dark as they had been that afternoon in February. However, there was a light in them that hadn’t been present while at Hogwarts, and Harry realized it was because his words had gotten through to her, and she was accepting their deaths more easily than before.

Harry just pulled her close again, understanding flowing between them as they sat there in silence, remembering the two people who had been parents to them for many years, words unneeded.

…

Ginny sighed as she dumped her trunk onto the floor in her bedroom at Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix. She had so hoped to be allowed back to the Burrow this summer, but apparently Professor Dumbledore felt her and Ron’s safety was more important than their happiness and slight freedom. Here there was no chance of flying or playing Quidditch or even going outside. They would be locked up the entire summer with only one another to try to entertain themselves with, not even able to use magic except where their mother couldn’t see them for fear of getting into trouble.

Oh, how she wished she could join her friends and Harry at Marauder Manor rather than staying here! At least there they could run around and play and train without being in danger or getting into trouble. There was also even more room in the manor itself than this house had.

But _no_ , her mother wouldn’t let either of them out of her sight. She had a feeling Ron was going to rebel against her. Since he was of age, he could Apparate and use magic all he wanted without trouble, but their mother appeared to have forgotten that since she told him off for levitating their trunks up the stairs rather than making either of them carry them. In fact, except for Harry, Tracey, and Draco, all of the sixth years from this past school year were of age.

“Ron! Ginny! Come down for dinner!” their Mum called, and Ginny sighed before pushing her trunk a little bit more into the room before heading downstairs to eat. She met Ron on the stairs, and they shared an annoyed look before reaching the dining room.

“How was school this term, dears?” Ginny’s Mum asked, and Ginny caught Ron’s eye again to raise an eyebrow in question. Her brother shook his head, and she sighed before answering.

“Not bad, Mum. OWLs were simple, as well as classes. There was a spot of trouble at the end of term in the Slytherin dorms, but it never reached the rest of the school.”

“Well, that’s good, dear,” her Mum replied, busying herself with putting platters of food on the table, most likely expecting other Order members to eat over as well. “How about you, Ron?”

“Same as Ginny except normal exams,” Ron decided on with a shrug. They shared another look at how their mother completely ignored the information about a problem within Slytherin, either knowing all about it or deciding that, since it didn’t affect her own children, she didn’t have to worry about it. Ginny could only hope it was the former and not the latter, because her Mum _knew_ Harry was a Slytherin, as were many of Ginny’s closest friends.

“That’s great,” their Mum said distractedly. “What are you both going to be doing this summer?”

“Well, I was thinking of going to a friend’s house in a couple weeks,” Ron admitted, and Ginny blinked in surprise before realizing this was Ron’s way to testing the waters about going to Marauder Manor.

“What?” her Mum demanded, spinning around to face her children, face full of shock and anger. “You will _absolutely NOT_ , Ronald Weasley! The reason we are staying in this house is to keep you safe, and leaving it just to visit _friends_ who might be attacked by Death Eaters or be impersonated or something else is _unacceptable_! Never! Not this summer.” Their mother turned back to setting the table. “Besides, you both can’t use magic or defend yourselves if there’s an attack.”

“Mum, I’m _of age_ now,” Ron ground out, and Ginny realized their mother had been so busy with the Order that she was confusing Ron’s age with her own. Either that or she was babying him because they were the only two children left for her to baby. “I know how to fight if I need to. My friends are _also_ under the Fidelius Charm where they are. I’ll be fine.”

“ _No, Ronald!_ ” their Mum yelled, turning again to glare at him. “I do not care _how_ protected they are or that you _are_ of age, now. You’re staying where I can _see you_.”

“And if I wanted to visit my boyfriend, Mum? You know, Harry Potter, one of the most protected people in our world right now?” Ginny demanded.

“Samuel and Daniella Davis _died_ this year, Ginny! _DIED_! How protected can he be if that happened?” her mother asked, so worked up by her fear of losing her children that she wasn’t thinking before she spoke. She didn’t even notice when Ginny began to tear up at the reminder of the loss of two brilliant people, Ron moving to wrap an arm around her shoulders. Ginny knew she and the twins were the only ones in their family to know the Davises, but the way her mother had said that… At least Ron understood her pain enough to be kind about it.

“ _MUM!_ ” the voice of Bill Weasley yelled from behind Ginny, and she and Ron turned to see him and Fleur standing there looking shocked. “How _could_ you? Are you so upset at just a few questions about leaving this house that you can’t see your own _daughter_ is in _tears_? Come here, Gin.”

Bill held his arms out, and Ginny ran over to him and hugged her older brother she had rarely seen growing up until her fourth year. Fleur placed a hand on her shoulder and moved to whisper comforting words in Ginny’s ear. It was then that Ginny recalled her oldest brother and his fiancé had also known the Davises.

“Ginny, I —” her Mum began, but Ginny felt Bill shaking his head.

“Mum, just stop,” he told her. “Ginny _knew_ Samuel and Daniella, just as Fleur and I did thanks to Harry and Tracey. The two of them cared for her even though it had been a while since they had seen her because Harry and Tracey love her in their own ways. They were amazing people, and the world is a little bit darker with them gone.

“Sirius Black contacted Fleur and me at the flat to ask if we could possibly bring Ron and Ginny over in a couple weeks to visit their home and see Harry and Tracey, maybe even visit Muggle London, but I see now is a bad time to even ask.”

Bill raised an arm to wave his wand, making three plates fill themselves with food and float behind him as he led Ginny and Fleur from the room. Behind her, Ginny could hear Ron doing the same thing before he followed with a call of, “Wait up!”

Soon, they were all in the room Bill and Fleur shared if they ever stayed at Headquarters, eating their dinner in silence.

…

Dinner at Marauder Manor that first evening was a silent affair. Tracey sat between Theo and Harry, rarely able to make herself look up from her plate. Finally, though, dinner and pudding was eaten, and there was nothing to stop the conversation that was going to have to happen at some point.

“Does everyone here know how… it happened?” Samantha Greengrass asked from between her husband Daniel and Daphne.

“Only what was in the papers,” Draco admitted as he shook his head, most of the others agreeing with him, but she and Harry didn’t. Tracey honestly couldn’t get the images from that memory out of her head, seeing her parents fighting against the Death Eaters to protect the Aurors and her and Harry, seeing the look on her parents’ faces as they told Angelina and the others to be sure she and Harry knew that they loved them… It was so painful to think about, but it was rarely far from the front of her mind.

“Harry? Tracey?” Remus asked softly, and Tracey looked up to meet Harry’s green eyes, seeing the tears in his own eyes as well. “You both watched the memories, didn’t you?” Tracey felt herself nodding without really thinking about it, and Harry did as well, even as they both never lost eye contact.

“If we hadn’t watched it then, when we were first told, when it hadn’t sunken in, we would never have been able to,” Harry whispered, still audible in the dead silent room. “And if we hadn’t watched it at all, we would never have been able to even come close to accepting their deaths, let alone begun to recover from them.”

“No wonder you were both so quiet…” Susan breathed, and Tracey could feel, without looking away from Harry, the horrified stares of their friends.

“It took Ginny and me ages to realize that they had somehow seen what had happened,” Theo muttered sadly, “but neither of them have been able to talk about what they saw.”

“That morning, Daniella wanted to go back to Davis Manor to see her home and to see the Second Force,” Daniel Greengrass began sadly, sighing. Tracey remembered the argument and other events as they were said aloud, closing her eyes as she pictured them. “Samuel didn’t want to let her go, even with him and the Force there, but Remus persuaded him to let her go…”

“While they were there,” Sirius continued in a darker and more serious voice than Tracey had ever heard from him except when speaking of Voldemort himself, “Death Eaters appeared to attack the Aurors, hoping to kill the Second Force that had been giving them so many problems. The moment Samuel realized it, he ordered the Aurors to retreat through the massive Floo system he had hooked up to Davis Manor for just this reason.”

“Angelina, Alicia, Patricia, and Robert Weston stayed behind,” Harry added in a completely hollow voice. “They were going to fight the Death Eaters to allow the others to escape because it was taking too much time to flee, but Samuel and Daniella told them to leave, that they would fight the Death Eaters themselves. Our friends fought the orders, but Samuel and Daniella were adamant, and there was nothing our friends could do.”

“Mum and Dad…” Tracey began hesitantly, her voice choking up, but she knew she had to say something about what happened, at least something, or she’d never be able to get over it. “Mum and Dad told them to tell Harry and me that they l-love us. They fought for us, so that we can live. T-they said that Voldemort h-has to d-die, even if it meant th-they had to as well.”

Tracey was in tears by that point, remembering their words in their own voices. Harry had an arm around her shoulders and Theo one around her waist, and everyone in the room was in tears of some sort.

“Angelina stayed behind to watch as Samuel and Daniella set off the traps set up by the entrance to the Manor,” Remus sighed, most likely knowing the story had to be finished. “After that, they fought until they were hit too many times. Daniella was hit by the Killing Curse first, and Samuel died holding her close to him, knowing it was done.”

Tracey turned to lean into Theo, crying as she remembered that final image of her parents. As Harry rubbed her back, Tracey could only think about her mother on the ground with her father holding her body lovingly, not giving up but accepting the inevitable. She both wished the images were gone and feared that she would lose her parents’ final moments of life.

“We don’t think the goal of the attack was to attack Samuel and Daniella,” Samantha sighed, breaking the silence that had fallen. “When anyone went to Davis Manor, it was always unannounced and random. In this case, the point of the attack was the Aurors.”

“If Samuel and Daniella hadn’t been there, most would probably be dead,” Daphne concluded. “They saved over fifty lives…”

“By sacrificing their own,” Draco muttered. Tracey was saddened by their words, but they also helped calm her down as that fact was pointed out to her yet again. Her parents were gone, but it was because they had been fighting for what was right and the Wizarding World as a whole — it was how they would have wanted to die.

“You lot should go to bed, and Susan, your aunt is expecting you,” Remus announced quietly.

Everyone began slowly standing up, the discussion having worn them all out. Harry and Theo helped Tracey up to her room, where she pretty much collapsed onto her bed. The two boys took a seat near the foot of her bed.

“I’ll be fine,” she told them softly. “I just need sleep, now…” Meeting Harry’s eyes, she conveyed that she wasn’t lying, and he nodded and gave Theo a look before leaving the room. Theo, on the other hand, just moved closer to her. “Theo, I’m okay for now.”

“I know you are,” he whispered, lying down behind her with his mouth by her ear and his arms around her waist. “Right now, though, you shouldn’t be left alone, not after reliving that. Go to sleep, Trace; I’m not going anywhere. And if you wake up, Harry is upstairs, and I’m just down the hall. We’re all here for you both.”

“Thank you,” Tracey mumbled to him gratefully, her eyes closing of their own accord.

“Sleep,” Theo encouraged, pulling her closer to him, and Tracey felt herself drifting off in his arms.

…

“They’re our friends!” Maya yelled angrily, glaring at her parents. It was only eight in the morning, but all four members of the Pritchard family were wide awake, dressed, and having a huge fight in the dining room. Graham was standing slightly behind and to the side of his older sister, watching the fight and waiting for his chance to join in, despite having been silent for the past three minutes of it.

“Many of them are _Mudbloods_ , Maya, and you’ve been around their _parents_!” his mother exclaimed, sneering at some of the words. Graham and Maya flinched back as if they had been physically hit, shocked and disgusted by what their mother was saying.

“ _SO WHAT?!_ ” Maya demanded, her fury overwhelming the feelings Graham still felt. “They’re our _friends_ , and there’s _NOTHING wrong with them_!”

“You are _friends_ ,” and here Graham’s father sneered, “with _Muggles, Mudbloods,_ Half-bloods, and blood traitors! We did _not_ raise you this way!”

“No, you didn’t,” Graham replied in a dark voice, not raised at all yet, and gaining the attention of his family. “Instead you tried to raise us to be _Death Eaters_.” This time it was Graham sneering out the words. “Well, guess what? We’re not going to ever _be_ Death Eaters! _Never_.”

“Where did we go wrong?” Graham’s father asked softly, shaking his head in a sad way.

“If by wrong you mean failing to turn us into Mini-Death Eaters, I guess it was the day you let Natalie become my best mate,” Graham decided, his voice hard and angry. “You see, her parents are what you call _Mudbloods_ , not that you’ve ever found that out because they act just like Purebloods when around you.”

Graham’s parents looked completely shocked at the revelation, and there was a sort of denial in their body language, as if they couldn’t believe what they were hearing. When he looked at his sister, Graham could see that Maya was pleased with their reaction and also proud of him right now. They both waited for their parents to react.

“You lie,” his mother finally hissed, her eyes narrowed at him.

“It’s true, Mother,” Maya declared. “ _We_ grew up knowing the truth once Natalie’s parents decided we were old enough to understand that it was a secret and couldn’t be told around _you_. They recognized you for what you were, but wanted all three of us to have someone outside of our families to play with, so they pretended to be _just — like — you_. All for _our_ sakes. Their blood is as pure as our _Mudblood_ friends’.”

“Both of you, to your rooms, and you’re not to leave them until you’ve _learned your place_ ,” their fathered growled, fury written all over his body.

“ _No_ ,” Maya replied harshly, moving to grab Graham’s hand in her own.

“ _What did you just say_?” their father asked, dangerously quiet, his voice but a whisper that reminded Graham of their Head of House one time when someone in his class had found it funny to mix two potions together that shouldn’t have been.

“I _said NO_!” Maya exclaimed. “If this is how you’re going to treat us, Graham and I are _LEAVING_!” Graham blinked in surprise, but found he couldn’t argue with his sister, not when their parents were acting like _this_. Harry and the others would take them in, especially when they heard about this.

“If you leave, you’re _blood traitors, BOTH OF YOU_!” their mother yelled.

“ _SO WHAT?_ ” Graham responded just as loudly, yelling for the first time and making all three jump. “If it’s a choice between being a blood traitor and joining _Voldemort_ , I’d rather leave and be viewed as a blood traitor! It’s not like our friends will _care_! In fact, they’ll be saddened by this but accepting, because many of them know what we’re going through!”

“Come on, Graham,” Maya told him, pulling on his hand. He let himself be pulled up the stairs to their rooms. “Pack with magic — leave nothing behind. You’ve got a minute.”

Graham nodded and quickly moved into his room. His wand was waving with a few muttered spells, sending all of his belongings flying into his truck, rucksack, or pouches. It took all of thirty seconds for him to be completely packed. His pouches were on his belt or in his pack, his bag over one shoulder, and his trunk shrunken and in his pocket. Graham took one last look around his bedroom and left it, closing the door behind him.

Maya was already waiting, luggage exactly the same as his, taking his hand in hers and leading him back downstairs to the Floo, but their parents were waiting for them.

“Neither of you is going anywhere,” their father announced when their parents saw them. “Go back to your rooms because you’re _grounded_.”

“What, until we’ve decided to become Death Eaters just like you’re obviously going to be as soon as you can?” Maya demanded, her face furious and her hand clenching around Graham’s; her grip was actually beginning to hurt him. Then Graham saw his parents’ faces, and he realized that she had gotten it perfectly correct: their parents _were_ planning on joining Voldemort very soon. In fact, that was probably why they had permitted their friendship with Harry at all!

“You just wanted us to get information on Harry for you so that you’d have something to offer _HIM_!” Graham yelled, squeezing Maya’s hand in return and taking a step forward. “You were _using us_! And you call yourselves our _parents_?” Graham was _disgusted_ with the people he had looked up to and loved for so many years, even up until this very moment. Yes, he had had others to look up to like Harry, Maya, and the other older students, but his parents had always been part of that list as well — until _now_.

“You _disgust_ me,” Maya snarled as she saw their faces. “Come on, Graham; let’s get out of here.”

Maya moved to go around their parents to the Floo, but they both pulled out their wands and pointed them at him and Maya. They both let go of the other and drew their own wands, Graham aiming his at their father and Maya their mother. The two of them had silently agreed that they were leaving, even if it meant fighting their parents to be allowed to escape.

“You both won’t stand a _chance_ against us!” their mother laughed, and Graham could tell his father agreed with that statement. Graham just gritted his teeth and held his wand tightly. Both of his parents lowered their wands slightly, shaking their heads sadly. “Maya, Graham, stop this nonsense and go to your rooms.”

“ _STUPEFY!_ ” Graham and Maya yelled at the same time when they saw the wands lower, surprising their parents so much that they fell to the Stunners.

“Come on, Graham!” Maya called, running to the fireplace, and Graham followed, jumping over his parents in the process. They both grabbed a pinch of Floo powder, and Maya went into the fire first. Then it was Graham’s turn, and he took one last look around before muttering, “Marauder Manor,” under his breath, feeling relieved that his parents had never been let in on the secret.

…

Maya could still feel herself shaking with fury as she stepped aside and then caught her brother as he flew out of the Floo at Marauder Manor, seeing the withheld anger in the light green eyes they shared. They were both furious and disgusted, but they were also saddened, and she knew it.

“Maya? Graham? What are you both doing here?” Harry asked from the doorway as she and her brother looked up. He looked like he had been awake and training for a while, but he also looked tired. “Why do you have your stuff? Is something wrong at your house?”

“Yeah,” Graham muttered darkly, surprising Harry but not her. “Our parents are manipulative bastards who are next in line to join Voldemort, and they were willing to use _us_ to do it!”

“Merlin…” Harry whispered. “Come in, you two. You can stay with us for sure. Go put your stuff in your rooms while I let the others know what’s going on. Meet us in the dining room once you’ve unpacked.”

Maya nodded, grateful Harry had realized they needed a chance to calm down and sort themselves out after that fight. He quickly disappeared, leaving them to head upstairs to their normal rooms to unpack. Before Graham could go into his room, however, Maya pulled him into a hug that he easily returned.

“I love you, Graham; always remember that,” she told him softly, and he nodded into her shoulder.

“Love you, too, Maya, no matter what,” he replied.

As long as they had one another and their friends, they’d make due, despite their parents obviously being on Voldemort’s side. They’d survive.


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five

It was hard to be here, Harry decided as he stood looking around the private graveyard. Like everyone else here, he was dressed in a set of pure black robes, and at the moment, his throat was choked up while his eyes burned as they hadn’t since he and Tracey had heard of the deaths. He had one arm around Tracey’s shoulders and the other around Ginny’s waist.

Everyone with a colored Journal was here along with a few of their families. Fleur, Bill, and even Tonks had promised to protect Ginny, Tonks saying that she had been ordered as protection by Minister Bones herself. After what Bill and Fleur had told her Monday evening, Mrs. Weasley hadn’t objected once Ginny’s protection had been worked out.

Harry knew he was close to breaking down, and Tracey was already beginning to.

It didn’t exactly help matters that they were standing on the grounds of Davis Manor where Samuel and Daniella Davis had died fighting. There was no sign of the fight, not after Sirius and Remus had fixed up the house and grounds, but Harry could bring forth his memories of being in the Pensieve, seeing Death Eaters breaking through the wards and tearing apart the house not far from where they stood.

The funeral of Samuel and Daniella Davis was kept very quiet, with only friends and family invited, of which only Tracey was family by blood. They were being laid to rest in a small, warded area in the corner of the grounds, where Daniella’s family had been buried over the generations before this manor became Davis property after her parents passed away.

Before Harry sat two handsome, mahogany caskets with beautiful carvings decorating them. The holes had been dug and the gravestones placed the day before by the adults. Harry and Tracey had been given the chance to levitate the caskets into the graves, and it had only taken a few looks between the pair for them to agree, realizing they needed to do this.

Of course, no one here expected speeches, not about this. Despite the months since they had passed away, their loss still cut deeply into everyone’s hearts. This was a time to quietly say goodbye, to make it real. There would be no official words, but everyone would get a chance to say something, somehow.

Finally, Harry sighed and let go of Ginny’s waist, catching Theo’s gaze over Tracey’s head. His friend nodded and let go of Tracey, allowing Harry to lead her forward, her sobs subsiding as she realized what they were about to do. Both of them drew their wands, Harry in his left and Tracey in her right, their free arms wrapped around the other. Together, they pointed their wands at the caskets and silently levitated them, moving them forward slowly until they were floating above the holes.

_Ready?_ Harry asked silently as his eyes found Tracey’s, and she hesitated before nodding slowly. Squeezing her just a little, Harry began to lower Samuel into the ground, and Tracey did the same with Daniella. Tears finally began to fall as a thump was heard, signifying the bottom of the graves being reached.

Before anyone could move, however, Harry pulled Tracey forward again, and she caught on easily as he bent to pick up a handful of dirt from the pile. Wands away, they took a handful of dirt in each hand and stood side-by-side in front of the graves of the only parents they had ever known.

“Thank you,” Harry whispered. “For saving me, for healing me, for teaching me, for treating me like an adult and not a child… Just, thank you for being there for me.”

Harry let a handful of dirt fall into each grave and moved back, letting Tracey say her own quiet words before dropping her own dirt into the graves. When she backed away, it signaled to the others that they could move forward for their own goodbyes.

As their friends, the family they had made their own, moved forward, Harry pulled Tracey to him, hugging her tightly from behind. Tracey seemed to collapse in on herself, falling to her knees, and Harry went down with her, never letting her go. Both of them were crying as they sat there, the pain from four months before suddenly fresh in their minds. His face was in her dirty-blond hair, resting against her shoulder as he cried, and she was sobbing into her knees.

Arms wrapped around Harry from behind, reaching around to hold Tracey as well, and he felt another pair of arms do the same from in front of Tracey. He didn’t have to move to know that Ginny and Theo were there for them, just like they had been the past few months. The gazes from those around them were heavy on Harry, reminding him that they weren’t alone and that the others would help them how they could.

Harry felt some of the pain diminish, if only slightly. With the others there, he could feel himself healing, if only just a little, and he could hope that it would get to the point where he could talk about the pair without hurting, like discussing Cedric had come to be. Yes, he would always feel a dull aching, but he hoped to lose the sharpness of his pain.

“It’s done,” the melancholy voice of Sirius said from above Harry. He looked up to see Sirius’s grey eyes full of pain and sadness as he looked down at the four teens, but Harry just looked over to see that the graves had been filled up and settled. Harry could only nod once at his godfather before moving his head back to Tracey’s shoulder, his face tilted so that his mouth was by her ear.

“We’re going to have to leave soon,” he whispered to her, and Harry felt her head nod. “If you want, we can say goodbye one more time, or we could just leave and come back another time.”

“One more,” Tracey muttered, and Harry just sat up completely, pulling Tracey with him. Ginny and Theo let go of them as he helped Tracey stand, both of them moving until they reached the graves again, kneeling in front of them.

“I wish you hadn’t died, Samuel, Daniella, but we won’t let you down,” Harry got out softly. “Together, we’ll win this war and make sure Voldemort is gone for good. You’ve done your part, and we’ll finish ours. Love you both, and I’ll never forget you.”

“What Harry said, Mum, Dad,” Tracey continued just as softly, her voice choked. “Love you both so much, and I miss you. I’ll make you proud.”

“They already _were_ proud of you both,” Amelia spoke from behind them, and Harry and Tracey turned to see their friends — no, their family — standing there, watching them, tears on their own cheeks. “You’ve made them so proud, made us all so very proud. Whenever we spoke of the war, we always knew you’ll succeed at winning, no matter what you face.”

“Thank you,” Harry whispered for them both, and Amelia nodded in understanding.

“Let’s get back to Marauder Manor so we can get everyone home,” Remus sighed, and Ginny and Theo moved to stand by him and Tracey as they stood, glancing back at the gravestones even as they followed the others up to the house.

“Harry?” Ginny called to him quietly, and Harry looked her in the eyes. “It will be okay.”

“I know, Gin, I know,” he replied, and he meant it. He and Tracey had needed this, and they would heal even more than before, now. They would eventually be okay.

…

The week following the funeral was full of darkness in Marauder Manor. There were very few laughs heard as the teenagers trained in the basement, completed their homework, and sat through more lessons on law and the Wizengamot. Pranks were nonexistent, and the pool was left untouched. Brooms sat in trunks and Animagus forms were unused.

Remus read over and approved the werewolf laws that had been side projects during the school year and were now a major focus. Sirius and Daniel had a few wording changes, but for the most part, the laws and amendments written by the boys needed no edits after hours of being tweaked and perfected. And it showed how hard things were when one realized not even Draco and Theo were complaining about the continuous work.

It seemed to all living or even just visiting the sad home that nothing could change the atmosphere.

“I know why they’re like this ¬— why _we’re_ like this — but…” Harry told Tracey with a sigh as they sat in his room, watching the walls.

“Mum and Dad wouldn’t want the Manor to be like this, for any of us to be like this,” she finished sadly. “What should we do about it, though?”

“Oh, I don’t know…” Harry began slowly, a very small smirk on his face as the familiar mischievous glint returned to his eyes. In his hand, he held a small packet innocently, and he could see Tracey fighting her own smirk as her eyes began to shine again.

…

At the lunch table, no one questioned why Harry and Tracey were drinking only from bottles of Butterbeer they had brought with them while the rest enjoyed the drinks set out on the table. Of course, this was most likely because the tiny smirks on the pair’s faces went unnoticed. It came as a complete surprise to the ignorant when their bodies began vibrating, the speed of it picking up until, suddenly, it stopped, leaving them to look down at themselves in confusion.

This led to screaming.

Harry was holding back a snort as the sight of everyone at the table looking like they had been hit with electricity and turned various colors, their hair standing straight up. Everyone was staring around the table in complete shock.

Turning to meet Tracey’s eye, neither could hold it in any longer, and they snorted. Every eye was suddenly on them and their smirks of amusement, and as a group, the others all blinked before they began laughing. They had gone so long without laughter that they couldn’t hold it back now that it had started, and before long, many had their heads on the table, were banging the wood with open palms or fists.

Neither Harry nor Tracey laughed as hard as the others, but even they were seen and heard snickering at the sight of their friends’ mirth. Both of them had known that to bring laughter back to Marauder Manor, it would take the two of them showing that it was fine to have fun and enjoy themselves again, despite the sadness and pain hanging in the air.

Hopefully this would lighten the mood.

…

Lord Voldemort looked down at the good sized group of Death Eaters, all freshly Marked and drinking pain potions provided by Severus. These men and women would make good additions to his ranks, especially as they could actually duel and provide what he needed to win the war, unlike some of his other recruits.

“Welcome to the Death Eaters,” he announced softly, gaining their instant attention as they all stood up straighter, proud behind their masks and robes. “You have all proven capable and passed our tests.”

Lord Voldemort walked forward, moving between the lines of his people. He knew from the magic of his Mark which Death Eater was which behind their masks. These Death Eaters had gone above and beyond what he wished, providing information like no other and showing exceptional ability with a wand.

“Ah, the Pritchards,” he finally said, standing before two Death Eaters. “Do you have anything to tell me?”

“My Lord, our children…” the man began, his head bowing slightly. “They are blood traitors,” he suddenly announced sharply. “Despite our teachings, they have turned against you, my Lord, and they’ve turned to that _Potter boy_ instead.”

“This is… most disappointing of them,” Lord Voldemort mused, “but it was to be expected.” The Pritchards stiffened, obviously startled. “Oh, yes, Harry Potter has been infecting the minds of the next generation for years now, stealing them away from me. I do not know what he plans or under whose orders he’s working, but the so-called Boy-Who-Lived is a menace, and I will deal with him soon enough. For now, protect yourselves, try to bring the young back to our side, and do not lose.”

“Yes, my Lord,” the Death Eaters chanted together, bowing their heads.

“Leave unless you have information for me,” Lord Voldemort ordered, and most left the room as their Lord reclaimed his seat to accept new information.

…

Brandon Harper sat in a circle with some of his closest friends in his year in his bedroom. His parents had gone out with some of their friends, leaving all the teenagers at his home. Slytherin Isabella Stebbins and her twin brother, Alexander, who was a Hufflepuff, were chatting easily with Laura Carmichael, also from Slytherin. Malcolm Baddock, a Slytherin third year this year, was talking easily with Stephan Cornfoot, one of Brandon’s classmates. Kevin Entwhistle was sitting beside Brandon himself, also looking over the group that consisted of all but one Slytherin.

Except for Maya, they had the entire sixth year of Slytherin in this one room.

“Has anyone heard from Maya?” Isabella suddenly asked the room at large, and while most shook their heads, Brandon sighed sadly. “Brandon, what’s going on with your girlfriend?”

“She and Graham ran away from home to stay with Harry,” he informed the group, earning gasps. “It was almost two weeks ago, but they didn’t want to worry anyone. She only told me so that I’d know why I couldn’t go to her house.”

“Why did they run away?” Laura demanded, and Brandon could only shrug.

“Maya told me that they didn’t agree with some choices her parents made and they had a terrible fight that had even Graham yelling in anger,” Brandon explained, remembering how he felt the same shock his friends were now at the idea of Graham showing true anger; he was usually so mild and calm, even during a fight. “They packed and ran before their parents could lock them up for the rest of the summer. Maya wouldn’t tell me anything else, though. She was ashamed of her parents and furious, saying that she would never speak to them again or follow in their footsteps. I didn’t get anything more from her after that.”

“What could her parents have done to get such a strong reaction from them both?” Malcolm wondered, his face thoughtful. “Graham only gets angry over two things, and even then it takes a lot…”

“Two things?” Kevin asked quietly.

“Natalie getting hurt, and Voldemort and his forces,” Malcolm reported, and Brandon sat up straight as a horrible idea came to him.

“ _No_ …” he gasped, unable to believe it, and he looked up to meet the eyes of his friends. Isabella, Laura, and Malcolm all shared his looks of horror while the others looked worried and confused. “If they did that… Merlin…”

“What?” Stephan demanded, looking scared, worried, and annoyed.

“Isa, what is it?” Alexander asked his twin, his voice purely worried.

“The only thing that could get both Graham and Maya _that_ angry at their parents would be —” Isabella began, shaking her head in disbelief and horror.

“Their parents joining Voldemort,” Laura finished, her voice hollow. The three boys who hadn’t figured it out slumped down, and Brandon couldn’t help but do the same at hearing it aloud.

“If that’s true…” Alexander shook his head. “Merlin, I can’t blame them for running away. They’re in Harry’s Inner Circle! The idea of their parents joining _him_ is just…”

“Completely possible,” Isabella stated, giving her twin a look. “Alex, you don’t go to their house often, never have, because of how unwelcome you are in most Slytherin households since you got Sorted. Maya’s parents, if convinced well enough, would join Voldemort without feeling guilty about anything they do under his orders. The way she and Graham normally act at school is so very different from when they’re home…”

“Their masks?” he asked with a knowing look on his face, and Brandon nodded along with the rest. Alexander sighed. “I can see that, especially since Voldemort returned. It’s just… sad, knowing it.”

“Well, we already knew that Theo and Draco’s fathers are Death Eaters, so what’s another family from Harry’s Inner Circle going to change?” Kevin shrugged, looking unworried. “I mean, I’m upset for Graham and Maya, but on a whole, it won’t change things in that group.”

“Good point,” Stephan acknowledged with a nod and a small smile.

Brandon was about to make a comment when he heard the Floo go off. Pulling out his wand, he gestured for his friends to be quiet and follow him. They all silenced their feet, Disillusioned themselves, and slipped out of his room and down the hall, looking over the banister and into the front room. There, all they could do was gape at the sight before them.

All of their parents were standing there in Death Eater robes, holding their masks in one hand as they began to pull off the black robes and shake out the wrinkles in their traveling clothes. They were talking quietly as they cleaned up their appearances.

“So, Pritchard’s kids have been hanging around with the wrong crowd,” Brandon’s own father mused. “Makes me wonder if Brandon has been as well, since he’s with Pritchard’s girl so much.”

“Most likely,” Laura’s father commented while shaking his head. “I’ve heard Laura say your son and Pritchard’s daughter are dating.”

“I’d best tell him to stop seeing her, then,” Brandon’s father decided with a thoughtful nod. “It wouldn’t do to have more of the children become blood traitors. It’s an embarrassment. Have you seen Lucius when his son is mentioned?”

“You mean the Malfoy who’s now a Black?” Isabella and Alexander’s father asked.

“Yes,” Kevin’s mother agreed. “His name has something to do with dragons, I believe.”

“Yes, yes, well, we’d best get the kids and return home,” Stephan’s father decided. The other adults began to speed up their changing, and the teens ran back to Brandon’s room, removing the charms from themselves easily.

“They — they’re all…” Isabella panted, shaking her head in disbelief, unable to finish her sentence.

“Death Eaters, they’re all Death Eaters,” Brandon finished hollowly, suddenly realizing what Maya and Graham must have felt: shock and pure anger.

“We can’t stay at home, now, not with them!” Alexander exclaimed. “My parents have never been pleased with my Sorting, and now…” Alex looked so very scared as he sat there looking at his hands, unwilling to think of the idea of fighting his parents.

“Hogwarts Protector,” Brandon snapped, and Alex’s head shot up before he sat up straight. “I’m sorry, Alex, and I know you’re afraid, but show that you’re worthy of being part of the group, owning a Journal.” A few hands went unconsciously to their necks, where the necklaces that held their Journals hung. “We’re all scared and worried and confused, but we’ve got less than three minutes before our parents come up here. We need to make a plan!”

“Alex can’t stay at home, and I’m not staying if he isn’t,” Isabella declared easily, her eyes hard.

“None of us can stay at home,” Stephan stated. “Not with our parents working for the enemy. They’ll make us join Voldemort, even if it means forcing us.”

“I guess that means we’re running away,” Brandon decided, and his friends all blinked in surprise. “Use magic to pack your bags the moment you get home. If you want to confront your parents, do so, but just leave within the hour. We have the Portkey pendants, right? I remember some of those who had to use them last summer saying Harry and some of the others appeared within minutes of them being used. They’ll help us!”

His friends all began nodding slowly. It was a sound plan that would get them away from their homes and help from people they trusted with their very lives. Harry and his friends, even those younger than them, were people the whole school looked up to because they were so in control and they could fight like nothing else. They were the leaders of the school, and everyone knew it.

Footsteps were suddenly heard in the hallway, and Brandon caught the eyes of his friends. They all nodded, and Brandon knew that they were going to all run away.

“Exactly one hour,” he whispered, looking down at his watch just as his friends did.

…

Harry was shocked when his Journal heated up against his chest three times very quickly, cooling between each time. He quickly stopped his practice duel with Astoria and returned his sword to the sheath on his belt while his wand went into his holster. Around him, his friends were putting their weapons away and moving quickly.

They all ran up the stairs while summoning their shirts and pants to them, slipping them on over the dragonhide armor they were wearing as they paused at the top of the stairs. Once dressed correctly, the group raced to the Floo, where the adults were congregating, obviously waiting for them.

“People are at Grimmauld again?” Harry asked around a very slight pant, reaching out to accept the water bottle offered by Remus while his friends accepted their own.

“Yes, though there’s been no news of an attack, so we’re not sure why,” Amelia replied.

“Let’s go, then,” Sirius stated, throwing in his Floo powder and disappearing into the flames. Everything moved quickly after that, everyone grabbing some powder and rushing into the flames.

When Harry stepped easily out of the fire, he moved to the side before looking around, draining his bottle as he did so. He caught sight of Maya hugging Brandon Harper as Brandon whispered in her ear. Around them stood the rest of their classmates, Alexander Stebbins of Hufflepuff, and Malcolm Baddock, one of Graham’s friends and classmates. They all hard dark looks on their faces.

Just as the last arrivals from Marauder Manor appeared, more students Portkeyed into the kitchen. Most were fifth and sixth years from Slytherin and Ravenclaw, but there were a few from Hufflepuff. What worried Harry the most was seeing Michael Corner and Anthony Goldstein in the room as they were his own Ravenclaw classmates, and even Zacharias Smith from Hufflepuff was there. The only House not represented was Gryffindor.

“What’s going on here?” he asked to silence the room, and everyone turned to him.

“The Death Eaters had a meeting tonight,” Anthony replied sadly, shaking his head. “Voldemort Marked a bunch of new recruits. I believe you’re seeing their children here.”

Another wave of students, again from those three Houses, arrived. This time it held third and fourth years with another fifth year or two. A handful had younger siblings about to begin Hogwarts or another year away with them. All of them had bags and trunks.

“Merlin…” Theo gasped from beside him. “All these families, torn apart by Voldemort and a single decision…”

“Okay, you lot!” Harry called, ignoring Theo’s words despite feeling that same sadness and disbelief. “We have bedrooms upstairs, two floors up. Siblings all share the same rooms no matter what gender you are. If you don’t mind sharing a room with a dorm mate, please do so. If we have to, we can expand the rooms and conjure more beds for you. We’ll come around the rooms and talk to all of you, figure out what’s going on and what we’re going to do about it.”

Everyone slowly made their way from the room except for Brandon, who was holding Maya’s hand. Once the room was cleared of all but him and those from the Manor, Harry collapsed into a chair with a deep sigh, letting his head fall onto the table with a thunk. Around him, the chairs around the table pulled out, and the others settled down.

“Did none of these parents think of their children?” Astoria muttered darkly, already knowing the answer. It was obvious that they hadn’t, else this wouldn’t have happened.

“They were like me and pretended to still be the good little followers they were before Hogwarts,” Draco sighed. “Their parents thought they’d be _happy_ to follow Voldemort, not utterly disgusted by it.”

“We’re going to have to send a house-elf over to cook and clean for them,” Samantha began, listing things. “Remus and Sirius should fix up the attic and bring training supplies over for them so they won’t get bored. We’ll have to have someone check on them every day to make sure nothing happens. I should tell two or three of the eldest about the Manor so they can Floo call us if there’s a problem…”

“Before we do any of that, we need to check on all of them, especially the youngest of the group, and be sure they’re okay,” Amelia reminded her. “Then we should get the rooms set up for them. After that, your list will work.” Samantha nodded in agreement easily.

“Harry, you and the other kids should do the talking,” Remus suggested. “Daniel and Amelia can fix up the rooms while you do that, and Sirius and I will go work on the attic. Samantha can find the oldest and tell them about Marauder Manor.”

Harry nodded and went to stand before pausing. “Samantha, tell Brandon here, please.” He gestured towards the sixteen-year-old Slytherin, who looked confused until Samantha told him the secret.

Once that was done, Harry led his friends and told them where to visit. After they were done, they’d discuss what had happened and figure out what to do. For now, they had a job to do.

 


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six

“At least thirty,” Draco reported with a sigh as the teenagers collapsed onto the various seats around the living room of Marauder Manor. Sirius, Remus, Samantha, and Daniel were all leaning against the walls, shaking their heads in sadness. Amelia had rushed away to the Ministry to see if there were any new reports of Death Eater activity that she hadn’t been informed of.

“Most are at least nine, but there’s that one seven-year-old…” Daphne added, her voice pained. One of the fourth year Ravenclaws had been forced to bring his younger sister with him, afraid of what his parents might do to her if he left her alone with them. He had been waiting for them to join Voldemort, having known that they were too far down that path not to join. Didn’t mean it didn’t hurt him, however.

“Did any of them say what they’re planning on doing?” Remus asked, and Harry shrugged.

“Those with younger siblings not old enough for Hogwarts this year were thinking of contacting family not aligned with Voldemort,” Astoria commented. “If they have no family, they were thinking of talking to Amelia about what the Ministry can do for them. The rest… they’re all still in some shock that their parents actually joined Voldemort. Once they get over that shock, they’ll be angry for a while. From there…” Astoria just shrugged.

“Are any of them willing to give official testimonies that their parents are Death Eaters?” Daniel questioned. “If they do, we can get them away from anything that might help Voldemort and inform the public to report them if spotted.”

“Most will probably do that once they’ve calmed down, and the rest will if asked,” Theo told the adults. “Ask in the morning when they’ve had a chance to sleep on it.”

“Speaking of sleep, we should all get up to bed, anyway,” Sirius yawned, stretching his arms. “We’re up later than we were expecting from all of this action.”

Sirius’ yawn set off a chain reaction, and many of the teens glared at the man while rubbing their tired eyes. Still, none of them fought the declaration as they slowly stood and headed towards the stairs to head up to their rooms.

At the back of the group, Harry lightly tapped Maya, Graham, Euan, and Tracey, gesturing towards the basement with his head once they had glanced in his direction. All four followed him down the stairs, all of them sitting down on the ground once they got there. They all just looked at one another once they were settled, knowing why they were there but unable to find the words to start the conversation.

Finally, Maya sighed and whispered, “Brandon told me he understands why we ran away.” She was looking at her brother when she said that. “The shock, the pure fury… He felt it just like we did.”

“Almost all of them did,” Euan muttered, “all except for those too young to understand, those not at Hogwarts yet.”

“We’re going to have to help them,” Harry sighed. “They can be angry and upset, but they can’t let it control them, change who they are.”

“They’ll start acting without thinking,” Tracey added, and Harry knew she was remembering the grief in their lives, from Cedric to her parents.

“Are they even going to be able to fight?” Graham asked softly, and the others turned to him. “I mean, if the Death Eaters invade, will the students be able to harm their own parents?”

“It might depend, but this is probably one of the few times those masks will come in handy,” Tracey admitted. “If we don’t know who we’re attacking, there won’t be anything to hesitate about.”

“True, but we’ll still have to help them,” Maya sighed. “Did you see the anger some of them held?”

“That’s why you remind them they have friends and can get their revenge at a later date,” the voice of Remus said from the stairs, and Harry turned to see him looking down at the group, his face sad. “From what you’ve told us, they’ll turn these emotions into determination once you’ve calmed them down. Unfortunately, they’ll end up hurt from this, betrayed — scarred, even. It’s just how it is. Now, this has been discussed enough for tonight. Go to bed, please.”

“Yes, Moony,” Harry grumbled under his breath, standing and reaching down to help Tracey up. Remus shook his head with a small, amused smile playing on his lips as he stepped aside to let the five teens pass, ruffling Harry’s hair in the process.

…

“We’ve new reports of Death Eaters,” Amelia informed Kingsley Shacklebolt as the man took a seat across from her in her office.

“What?” Kingsley gasped, sitting up straight as Amelia pulled out a scroll from a pocket. “There were no attacks, though!”

“No, there weren’t, but the parents of many Hogwarts students were Marked last night. Their children ran away in fear of being forced to join Voldemort’s ranks as well,” Amelia sighed, opening the scroll, which magically flattened out once pressed against the desk, leaving the names written on it visible. “After finally calming down, the eldest child in each family reported why they ran away and gave names and even pictures to us.”

“Their own _parents_?” Kingsley demanded, and Amelia knew that the man couldn’t picture it, couldn’t understand it. The idea of children reporting their parents, the ones who raised them, seemed impossible. Very few truly understood what was going on at Hogwarts, and it left the Wizarding World in shock whenever unexpected events happened because of it.

“The children are not the damned,” was all Amelia could say in reply, looking down at the list and reaching for an envelope of pictures. “Get copies of these names and pictures made into fliers to warn the public, and find pictures for those without them. Then get Aurors finding out who they associate with and search those records. Maybe we can find other new Death Eaters by connections to these ones.”

“Of course, Amelia,” Kingsley agreed, accepting the magically made copies Amelia handed to him in a folder.

As Kingsley left, obviously still amazed at who had reported these people, Amelia sat back in her chair a bit more, trying to rid herself of the memories of those furious eyes that had looked into her own not even an hour before as the teenagers reported what their parents had done.

…

Within just a week, Grimmauld Place was full of activity as the Hogwarts Protectors living there found games for their younger siblings to play with while they went into the attic and trained. The highest room in the house had been declared off-limits to any under the age of twelve. Anthony Goldstein had even taken the time to research and create an age line at the bottom of the steps that the youngest couldn’t cross no matter how hard they tried.

Quite often in the middle of the morning training at least a couple of the teens staying at Marauder Manor joined them, Maya there every time. It was from these teens with colored Journals that the Hogwarts Protectors got more training and information on what was happening outside the house. Neville, Hermione, Susan, Hannah, Luna, Justin, and Blaise had joined their friends at Marauder Manor and restarted the specialized training for those at Grimmauld Place, even teaching those who normally weren’t in the groups.

One of the pieces of news that relieved and pleased those at Grimmauld Place was hearing about the new law that allowed students to practice magic during the summer as long as they did it within their own homes. This would only be in effect until the war ended, but it meant that their friends were getting the chance to train at their own homes just as they were.

Life was as good as it could be at Grimmauld Place for children and teens who had run away from home due to their parents joining Lord Voldemort, even when a few more joined them throughout the week.

…

Fleur Delacour, soon to be Weasley with her wedding in just a few weeks, watched both Ginny and Ron as the siblings wrote in their Journals, looking terribly bored already, despite it only being eight in the morning. They had both been like this since returning from Hogwarts, and it was hard to watch, especially for those who knew how active they could be when given the chance.

“You are both bored, non?” Fleur called, startling the pair. Ginny glanced at Ron, and they both looked at her before nodding, sighing slightly. “What would you say to getting out of ‘ere for a leetle while?”

“To go where?” Ron asked immediately.

“Would Mum even allowed it?” Ginny questioned at the same time.

“To ze Manor and possibly somewhere in ze Muggle world,” Fleur responded, looking at Ron, and she turned to Ginny as she added, “And your mozer ‘as agreed to it as long as Tonks and I are wiz you ze entire time.”

“Really?” Ginny asked excitedly, perking up instantly, and Fleur noted Ron looked just as excited. “How did you manage it?”

“A note from ze Minister telling your mozer zat ‘er niece will be wiz you, so ze best Aurors will be zere as well,” Fleur told them with a slight smirk. “’Arry suggested it, ‘oping your mozer would be convinced.”

“Let’s get out of here, then,” Ron said quickly, standing and running up the stairs, moving more quietly than Fleur had expecting from the tall boy. When he returned, she saw, due to seeing those at Marauder Manor arm themselves, that he had on his belt that obviously had his sword in the buckle, a pouch on the belt, some knives hidden on his person, and two cloaks in his left hand. Passing one to Ginny, he put the other on his shoulders.

“I’m all ready to go,” Ginny declared once she had her own cloak on. Fleur was surprised before she noted the gold bracelet around her wrist and finally spotted Ginny’s other hidden weapons. It seemed the only female Weasley child never left her room without them.

Shaking her head, Fleur led the two teens down to the kitchen, where they would Floo from.

…

“Won’t we attract attention with such a large group?” Zacharias Smith questioned as they reached the entrance to the amusement park that had been chosen as their choice. Both Marauder Manor and Grimmauld Place were empty as all staying in both finally got a break from training to have some fun.

“There’s a charm on our coats so that they look like we’re all from a summer camp,” Harry called back to his friend from where he was talking hand-in-hand with Ginny. They’d had a wonderful hello when she got to the Manor, both ignoring the smirks sent their way when they reappeared.

“You kids remember the rules, correct?” Daniel Greengrass asked, looking around at the large group.

“We have to be in groups of at least four at all times, more if possible, and we check in near the entrance every hour or so,” they chorused, having repeated those exact words twenty times already. “If anything happens, we’re to return to Grimmauld immediately, even if we want to stay and help.”

“Good,” Tonks told them with a nod. She was the lead Auror of the group that day. “Now, go have fun.” She waved the teens off as those in charge of admission gave them the go-ahead.

Smiling and laughing, most of the youngest took off at a run, their older siblings fighting to keep up with them, drawing laughs from the rest. Harry was sticking with Ginny, Tracey, Theo, Ron, and Hermione for right now as they headed to the largest roller coaster of the park. As he looked around to see what else was there, Harry caught sight of a flash of blue that wasn’t there when he glanced again.

“These things _cannot_ be better than flying, Hermione,” Ron sighed, shaking his head. “I know you don’t like flying, but that doesn’t mean this place will be better. On a broom, you can control what happens and how fast. Here? No control whatsoever.”

As the debate continued on about whether flying or roller coasters were better, Harry raised an eyebrow while lowering his head to hiss to Ginny, “ _Is it just me, or are those two flirting_?” Ginny looked at her brother and close friend and could only shrug.

“ _Looks like it, but I didn’t even know they talked to one another,_ ” she replied.

“Talking about the flirting?” Tracey asked in an amused voice from behind them before Harry could say anything else. He turned his head enough to see she and Theo were trying not to laugh. “I was just saying how I’ve seen those two talking about strategy quite a bit in the Room when no one else is around. They always go quiet really quickly when they see me, though.”

“Ron and Hermione…” Harry mused quietly, his brow furrowed. “You know, I’ve never really thought about it before. Do you think it would work?”

“If you had asked me before fifth year, I’d have said no in an instant,” Theo replied without hesitation. “Now, after seeing how much Ron has matured? Maybe.”

Harry just shook his head. “We’ll just have to wait and see,” he finally decided as they reached the ride and the pair stopped debating to wait for the slower four.

…

Neville was walking beside Justin, both boys watching the two girls they were following, Susan and Hannah. The female Hufflepuffs were whispering back and forth, smiles on their faces as they held back laughs. The Gryffindor boy didn’t understand what could be so amusing, but then again, he was male and was resigned to the fact that he’d never understand women no matter how hard he tried.

“What do you think they’re talking about?” Justin asked. Neville turned to see his friend drink from the large cup of coke in his hand, waiting for a response.

“Could be anything, knowing them,” Neville finally replied, facing the front again.

“Think they’re talking about us?” Justin wondered, and Neville spun back around in surprise, a gasped “ _What?_ ” escaping his lips. “Really, Nev, even you should know by now that boys are what girls talk about the most.”

“Well, yeah, I know _that_ , but talking about us?” Neville questioned. “What gave you that idea?”

“Please tell me you’re not that blind, Nev, not like our Slytherin friends,” Justin groaned, shaking his head in disappointment. Neville could only furrow his brow in confusion. “Seriously, Neville, don’t make me spell it out for you. Hannah. Fancies. You.”

Neville could only blink. Hannah — fancy _him_? That would never happen. Not in a thousand million billion years. Yes, they were friends, and yes, they talked about Herbology and the HPs and that sort of thing quite a bit, but _fancying_ him? Never!

“I’m being serious here, Nev!” Justin insisted, and Neville knew his face must have shown his disbelief. “The way she watches you when you’re doing something, the way you both talk… She fancies you, and I bet you fancy her as well.”

Heat rose to Neville’s cheeks as he blushed, and Justin smirked at the sight. Rolling his eyes, Neville tried to control his blush as he said, “What about you and Susan, then?” Justin looked shocked at those words, and Neville just smiled. “Come on, if you’re talking about Hannah and me, you can’t keep quiet about you and Susan!”

“I’ll say nothing about what happens between Susan and me,” Justin stated, and Neville caught the quick glance at the mentioned girl ahead of them and the slight coloring of Justin’s cheeks.

When Justin didn’t say anything more, Neville looked up at the girls and saw tables up ahead, food stands in the area. An idea came to him, and he gave Justin a look. “Hey, Justin, I just thought of an idea…”

“Should I be worried?” Justin asked, looking a bit frightened, most likely by the look on Neville’s face.

“Only if you’re afraid to be alone with Susan in public,” Neville admitted with a shrug, and Justin’s face paled a bit. “There are tables and food up ahead. We need to eat lunch anyway, so why don’t you sit at a table with Susan, and I’ll sit with Hannah? We’ll be close to one another but far enough away that we aren’t crowding the other.”

“You — you’d be willing to sit and eat with Hannah?” Justin seemed shocked by the thought of it, as if he hadn’t expect it from him, but Neville just shrugged.

“I’ve done it before at Hogwarts. Just talk to her like you normally do, and it’s fine.

“Are you going to tell Hannah that you fancy _her_?” Justin demanded quietly.

“I might,” Neville decided with a grin before he sped up to tell the girls of the suggestion. It was about time he used his Gryffindor courage for something other than the HPs, after all.

…

Remus looked around the amusement park and saw the various children he was partially in charge of racing around all over the place. Despite knowing about the war, all of them, even Harry and his closest friends, were laughing and having a great time. He had already caught many of the couples slipping away for a few minutes to enjoy time to themselves while other, budding couples appeared to be enjoying the chance to talk.

“This was the right choice,” he told Tonks, and he saw her nod out of the corner of his eye. They had agreed to stay by the entrance together for their rounds, smiling as teenagers and children checked in with them quite randomly. It was nice getting to spend time with her away from the Manor. Sirius and the other pranksters in Marauder Manor were always teasing the various couples in the home, even if said pranksters got teased themselves at a later time.

“Which is why we went through the effort,” Tonks agreed. “They were all getting too serious, too moody. It will be easier to be around them for a while after this, now.”

“Yes, it will,” Remus sighed lightly, standing from the seat he had been in and offering Tonks a hand up. He had just spotted Daniel and Samantha headed their way, which meant it was their turn to get to enjoy the amusement park just as the kids were.

…

“That… was _so_ worth it!” Draco panted after transforming out of his fox form. The Portkey they’d had to use to return to Marauder Manor had dropped them off just outside the wards, so the teens had transformed and raced to the Manor, Euan getting a ride on Harry’s back in an effort to slow the Slytherin down and Ron declaring he would walk with the adults. Despite that handicap, however, Harry still beat the group to the house by a few seconds.

“It really was,” Harry agreed, regaining his breathe and turning to smile at Ginny. “Now, I’d like to be with Ginny for a bit before she has to go back to the Order for another few weeks. Unlike you lot, we don’t see one another every day.”

Taking her hand, Harry completely ignored the wolf-whistles and teases of his friends, knowing they would leave them both alone. It didn’t take them long to arrive at his room, warding the room and locking it carefully.

“I hate not being able to see you,” Ginny told him as they quickly settled down on his bed, her against his side, his arm around her. “Mum is being completely unfair about it.”

“Yeah, well, we’re dealing with it as best we can,” Harry reminded her. “Now, you don’t have that long until you’re supposed to be home, so…”

Harry silenced all conversation by capturing her lips with his own, enjoying their sweetness and softness as his own moved against them, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Ginny was pushed down against the bed without a conscious thought, and she moaned into their kiss. From there, well… Harry wasn’t really in the right mind to think of anything but Ginny’s lips kissing his own.

…

“Looks like the two of you enjoyed yourselves,” Tracey commented easily after Ron and Ginny had left via the Floo, following Harry up to his bedroom.

“Oh, shut it,” Harry muttered in her direction, trying not to let her teasing ruin his good mood. “Just because you’re snogging Theo all over the place doesn’t mean all of us get the chance to do that sort of thing whenever we want.” They reached his room and settled down on his newly-made bed, Harry leaning against the pillows he had leaned against his headboard and Tracey against the wall, a pillow behind her back.

“Besides,” Harry continued, forcing himself not to remember the images fighting to the front of his mind, “you two seem to be all over the Manor. It feels like every time I go into a room I find you two in there, snogging. Trace, it’s like every time I _turn around_ you’re there.”

“At least we try not to be so obvious about what we’re doing,” Tracey told him, and Harry rolled his eyes.

“I did that because, while it brought on teasing, at least you lot knew not to try and come into my room, let alone try to break the wards I put up,” Harry stated. “With the people in this Manor, I _know_ what would happen if they found a warded room, especially _my_ bedroom when Ginny is here. Who knows what they’d have found!”

“You shouldn’t be talking, Harry,” Tracey snapped, and Harry blinked in surprise. “Do you really think Theo and I don’t ward the rooms we’re in when we’re alone and think we can get away with it? Yet almost every time we do that, you come barging into the room and find us!”

“Oi! After that first time, I don’t break _any_ wards in this house unless I know for a _fact_ what’s going on behind them!” Harry complained. “I’ve not broken wards in _months_. All I do is open unlocked doors, and…” Harry trailed off as he realized what had been happening, anger beginning to fill him.

“Sirius,” he and Tracey snarled together, their eyes burning with fury as a quick, shared glance told him that they were thinking on the same page.

…

In another part of Marauder Manor, Sirius Black suddenly shivered and felt very, very afraid for no reason.

…

When Sirius found himself hanging upside-down from the ceiling in the living room, tied up with rainbow-colored ropes, his body covered in emerald green scales, and staring down at two completely furious sixteen-year-olds, he decided to stay silent. Around the room, the others snickered at the sight of Sirius but silently agreed it was better not to ask questions at the pure fury on Harry and Tracey’s faces. Sirius’ fear after reading the levitated note from the two teens was enough to tell them that this was well-earned and to leave it at that.


	27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

The weeks leading up to the end of July and the birthdays of Harry and Tracey were jam-packed.

The teenagers were still using the Wizengamot Study to prepare laws, editing and fixing the drafts as suggestions were made by the adults. Werewolf laws had been written and approved during the school year, and they had moved onto ideas for the other magical creatures ranging from Veela to Merpeople to Goblins and more. Ideas about how to fix the Ministry itself so that those with bad intentions could never gain jobs there again were thrown out there, and many had thoughts of how to keep the Magical Law Enforcement in top shape during both peace and war, whether it be this one or another in the future. Plans for how to deal with Azkaban were put to paper, as were ways to improve Hogwarts how it could be. The ideas just kept flowing, and no one was trying to stop them, despite the complaints from everyone about how boring and annoying it was to sit in the Wizengamot Study for hours on end, just writing and talking about law. It did, of course, help that Sirius had been informed by the teens that they didn’t need him to teach them anymore about the law and Wizengamot after all the studying they had put in.

As for training, well…

…

Harry was fighting back a smirk as Draco muttered darkly at him, blackthorn wand waving over cuts and bruises to heal them.

“Bloody Hell, Harry! Beat me up, why don’t you?” Draco exclaimed as he finally pushed himself to his feet.

“I thought I just had,” Harry mock-gasped. “Well, if you want me to do it again…”

“NO!” Draco yelled, stumbling backwards, completely ignoring the laughter around the basement in favor of getting away from Harry, who was easily bouncing on the balls of his feet, wounds healed, ready to go for another fight.

“I’ll fight you,” Astoria told Harry, and the older Slytherin grinned in anticipation of this fight. Sparring with Astoria was always a pleasure with her speed and ability.

She stepped forwards, a light layer of clothes covering her dragonhide armor. Her sword swung at her side, and Harry could see slight flashes of silver, signifying she had plenty of knives and daggers on her person. In her hand was her wand. Pouches lined her gold dragonhide belt, moving slightly with the weight of the objects in them.

Harry drew his sword from his sheathe, which he had placed against his back between his shoulders rather than at his side today, his wand held lightly in his left hand, which couldn’t be called his off-hand after all the training he had put it through; he could even write with both hands now. Pouches jangled slightly with the supplies packed into them, and he could almost sense the knives hidden in his armor and in invisible sheathes, tied around various parts of his arms and legs.

Oh, he was ready for this fight.

“Get away,” he heard Blaise order the adults who had come into the room. He and the other teens had backed away against the wall, far away from the protective wards that had been erected and got recharged each day just for this purpose.

“What —” Sirius began, but Remus pulled his godfather away from the area.

“It’s been a week and a half since they’ve sparred,” Theo informed the room at large, though Harry suspected his friends had already known this.

“And?” Sirius demanded, making Harry want to shake his head sadly. His godfather truly didn’t pay attention to the spars between him and Astoria, it appeared. Well, they would just have to give him a show.

“Just stay away — _far_ away,” Maya advised Sirius.

Harry met Astoria’s blue eyes, and he knew she was thinking along the same lines as he was. Oh, this was going to be a fun match.

Without any warning, both Harry and Astoria launched five Stunners at the other, flinging themselves to their lefts, rolling before jumping up from the ground. Harry could see a smirk on Astoria’s face as she grasped two or three knives, easily pulling them from their hidden sheathes. Moving to his right, Harry lifted his sword to deflect the knives, sending them clattering to the ground.

A few blasting hexes towards Astoria’s feet shattered the ground before her and created dust to obscure her view for the few precious moments Harry needed to pull some small, black marble-sized orbs out of one of his pouches, sliding them into the small indentations he had added to the hidden dragonhide gloves on his hands. He also grabbed a small, thin coil of transparent line, which easily wrapped around the handle of his sword.

By the time the dust had dissipated, Harry was ready for the Cutting Curses and Stunners she sent his way. Astoria appeared very suspicious as she looked at him, most likely trying to figure out what he had done in those moments he had been hidden from her view. However, instead of worrying too much about it, she transfigured some of the rocks let loose by the blasts into eagles and lions, sending them after Harry.

Honestly used to and even bored of this, Harry just gave a lazy wave of his wand turning them all into snakes, which he ordered to attack Astoria, though not to seriously injure her. As expected, Astoria Vanished the snakes and then shot metal darts at him, forcing him to hastily throw up a shield.

Before he could counter the attack, Astoria had sent several Cutting Curses at him, breaking through the already-weakened shield. Harry barely dodged in time, receiving two small cuts on his left arm for the slow reaction. However, he tuned out the pain to allow himself the chance to return fire with his own Cutting Curses, reaching down to pull out two knives as he did so. A quick wave of his wand attached the knives to the tip of his sword with an invisible, magic string, allowing him to swing his sword and attack with the knives from a distance.

Astoria was quickly on the defensive as Harry fired off Stunners and Cutting Curses with one hand while the other made the knives swing around her, the string almost trapping her a few times. This had the obvious effect of frustrating Astoria, who fell to the ground to dodge both knives and spells. While down there, Harry could almost see an idea come to her, and she whispered a spell with her wand digging slightly into the ground. Before he could hit her, Astoria dropped down into the hole made by her spell, and suddenly it was Harry on the defensive as he tried to see where she had gone.

Harry did have on advantage, however, that most didn’t know he had. After that snow war during Christmas, Harry had begun doing research on sensory spells, and it didn’t hurt that they could help in pranking. So, Harry was able to tap his wand against the ground beneath him and send out a small burst of magic that then returned and filled his mind with knowledge.

Astoria had made a series of tunnels beneath him and was quickly moving through them, unaware that Harry had just been warned of her approach and given a very basic layout of the tunnels beneath his feet. There was a major tunnel that attached to the hole Astoria had made with some smaller ones branching off, all of them stopped just beneath the surface.

While Harry didn’t know exactly where the tunnels were, he knew every single possible exit the younger Slytherin had created, and he quickly moved so that he wasn’t standing almost on top of any. Settling down in his spot, Harry began to think quickly.

He knew he needed a way to take advantage of Astoria’s tunnels, but he also couldn’t allow her to get the upper hand while he tried to use them. How to make it work, though? She was already in the tunnels, and nothing would make him dare try to go in through the hole she had made, knowing easily that she had trapped it against him. What to do?

An idea hit Harry just as Astoria suddenly jumped out of a newly formed hole, knives and spells flying through the air towards him. His sword flew through the air in a flash of steel, almost making the air sing with its speed, and absorbed the spells while deflecting the throwing knives. Unfortunately, in the process, Astoria disappeared into her tunnels again.

It seemed he would have to set up a trap to keep her above ground long enough for his idea to have even a chance of succeeding. With that in mind, Harry unraveled the thin, almost invisible, string from the handle of his sword and moved towards a set of possible exits all close to one another. Moving quickly and lightly so that Astoria wouldn’t realize what he was up to, Harry used magic to stick one end of the string to the ground and then proceeded to use the rest to set up a large trap, tying the end of the string to his sword as he stood right in the middle of the trap, standing perfectly still.

When Astoria burst out of the ground, sword raised and wand glowing red with a Stunner that had yet to be released, Harry just sent her a pleased smirk, which made her blink in fright. Before she could run, however, Harry lifted his sword just enough to be noticeable, and Astoria was suddenly tied up by the string, her sword clattering to the ground and her wand barely escaping the same fate.

Then, with a flick of his wrist, two of the Peruvian Instant Darkness balls left their places on his glove, hitting the ground and bursting open. In the sudden darkness that would take Astoria at least ten seconds to disperse due to the strings trapping her, Harry bent down and placed his wand to the ground, digging the tip in lightly. A whispered spell later, Harry’s mind was suddenly filled with a mental image of what his spell had accomplished. He then muttered a series of spells that all affected one another.

As the darkness began to disappear thanks to a steady wind, Harry rose and untied the string from his sword, leaving his weapons ready for whatever Astoria sent his way. However, when Harry could see again, Astoria had disappeared, back in her hidden tunnels. Around him, Harry heard the adults muttering quietly, but Harry just smirked and turned to catch Tracey’s eye for a moment. She could only raise an eyebrow at his look, only to have her eyes widen in surprise when Astoria’s scream escaped the tunnels through the three holes she had made.

Another hole suddenly appeared in the ground, and Astoria jumped out, her arm bleeding from what looked like a bite at the elbow. Behind her, three wolves the size of Sirius when he was Padfoot followed. Of course, Harry couldn’t hold back an even larger smirk as the wolves suddenly grew to full size, the charm placed on them gone the moment they left the tunnels.

Astoria’s face was one of pain and determination and even some fear as the wolves jumped at her, Harry quickly adding in Cutting Curses and Stunners to really throw her off. The younger Slytherin could do nothing but duck down and roll, hissing as she banged her hurt arm against the ground.

One of the wolves fell to her Cutting Curse, and another was Banished straight into the wall, where it turned back into the rock it had once been, but the third wolf evaded her Stunner and managed to claw her leg before it was Transfigured back into a rock. Astoria was still on her feet, but the blood loss was obviously getting to her, as was the lack of time to catch her breath.

Harry used his wand to let out a sharp whistle similar to the one the Aerial Squad used to coordinate their attacks, and more wolves left the smaller set of tunnels Harry had created beneath Astoria’s, jumping out of the tunnels altogether and returning to full size. There were six more wolves, all growling at Astoria, who looked between them and Harry in disbelief.

“How — how did you do you?” she panted, her body beginning to shake.

“While you were trapped and the Darkness Powder was active, I built a small series of tunnels beneath yours and transfigured some of the rocks made by the spell into wolves. Before they got too large, I used another spell to keep them small until they passed a ward I placed along the ground so that, when they left the tunnels, they would continue to grow to full size,” Harry informed her with a grin, happy to tell her how he had done it as it would most likely give her ideas for their next fight, as it always did.

“Now,” he continued, suddenly serious, the smile instantly gone, “do you yield?” Harry didn’t even have to hear the answer to know it; it was written all over Astoria’s paling face.

“Not yet,” she replied with narrowed eyes, launching a series of Cutting, Stunning, and Blasting spells at him, forcing Harry to dodge quickly.

His wolves jumped at her before she could react, one biting her arm lightly at the elbow as Harry had charmed them not to harm her terribly, just enough to slow her down. Another knocked her off her feet while a third jumped to land on her torso, holding her there. The other three wolves were pacing around her.

Just as Harry was going to tell her to yield yet again, he saw a very familiar movement, which drew his attention to the fact that her sword’s sheathe was very much empty. Before Harry could call out a warning to his wolves, the hand that had been at pushing against the wolf on her chest suddenly touched the buckle of her belt, grasping the sword that left it. Steel dug into the wolf, and its painful yelps were heard around the room before Harry returned it to its form of a rock.

The other wolves realized the danger quickly and backed away from her. However, it didn’t take Astoria more than a few flicks of her wand to turn them all back into stones. All that were left were Harry and Astoria, both with sword and wand drawn. Harry was impressed by her quick work, especially given the position she had been in, but now Harry was worried about his friend, who had turned quite pale and appeared to only be standing due to adrenaline and determination.

“Astoria, you’re going to hurt yourself,” he told her softly. “Please, just yield. You’ve lost too much blood and need to be healed.” Astoria didn’t even appear to be contemplating it, but then her eyes closed and she fell to her hands and knees, breathing heavily.

That was all the incentive Harry needed to sheathe his weapons and rush over to her, calling out as he did so, “Susan, Justin, Hannah!” They reached her just after he did, helping him lay Astoria on her back. They took over, wands quickly moving to figure out what needed to be healed. Within the first minute of falling to her knees, Astoria’s cuts and bites were healed and she had been given a Blood Restorative.

“Bloody Hell, Harry, it looked like you two were going to kill each other!” Sirius yelled as the others sighed in relief at the sight of Astoria’s color returning, her head now in Draco’s lap. Harry just snorted amusement at his words, and the other teens seemed just as amused by the idea, though the other adults were on Sirius’ side this time.

“My wolves were charmed to only bite her lightly,” Harry informed the adults, who blinked in surprise. “If you ask the resident healers, they’ll tell you how badly the wolves hurt her.” He gestured to the three Hufflepuffs.

“The bites were very light and only damaged muscle,” Justin reported with an amused look on his face. “They barely reached halfway to her bones. Those bites were mostly to cause blood loss and weaken Astoria, not actually hurt her.”

“If you thought that was them really going at it, then you haven’t watched us train enough,” Draco snorted, shaking his head as he looked down at his girlfriend, who had been drugged with a light sleeping potion so that she wouldn’t move her arms too much before the healing settled down. “These two were mostly aiming to outmaneuver the other, not have a full-out fight.”

“If that’s not a full-out fight for them, what is?” Samantha asked, and Harry looked to see that she almost didn’t want to know the answer but felt she should ask anyway. At least he knew she wouldn’t be too upset with the answer… hopefully.

“Oh, that’s when they mostly use non-magical fighting up close,” Daphne told her mother with a slight wave of her hand. “You know, swords and knives and daggers and their hands and feet. When they have their wands and other supplies out, it’s more of a tactical fight than one of strength.”

“You do know that, in the heat of battle against Death Eaters, this isn’t how you’re going to be fighting, correct?” Remus asked, and Harry saw that he almost felt reminding them of this would pop their bubble that had been built by their training.

“Oh, of course we know that,” Graham shrugged, glancing at his sister in amusement, which Harry saw but didn’t understand. “In fact, Maya had a similar conversation to this one just a few days ago with her boyfriend,” Graham added with a smirk while Maya glared at him, and Harry understood the look now.

“Really?” Harry asked her, and she nodded slightly.

“He had questions, you know,” was all she said as she lifted a shoulder. “Speaking of Brandon, who’s coming to train with them today?”

That ended all conversation as everyone began discussing whose turn it was to go to Grimmauld Place while Draco helped Astoria upstairs to one of the couches in the living room. Many of the adults shook their heads in amusement and headed upstairs to do whatever it was they planned on doing. Harry asked Susan to heal him before he went up to his bedroom to change into swimming trunks; he was in the mood to use the pool for a while.

…

“Hey, Brandon, where’s your girlfriend?” Zacharias Smith called from his place in the attic of Grimmauld Place. “Isn’t she usually here with some of the others by now?” Around the room, many others paused their training to hear the response Brandon gave to the usually arrogant Hufflepuff.

Alexander Stebbins, about to be a sixth year Hufflepuff, shook his head at his Housemate’s tone. Zacharias believed that, because he was among the oldest of the group, he was one of those in charge. The truth was that those in charge were his Ravenclaw classmates Anthony Goldstein and Michael Corner as well as Brandon. In fact, even Alex’s own sister Isabella was looked at as a leader before anyone even considered Zacharias.

“She sent me a note by Journal at least an hour ago,” Brandon told the room at large. “They were training, and Astoria and Harry had their first spar in a week and a half. They’ll be here sometime soon.”

“A week and a half?” one of the fourth year Slytherins called in disbelief. “How did the others let them go so long without fighting? They know what they’re like!”

“We’ve been busy, and the two of them enjoy getting to spar after larger chunks of time,” the calm voice of Maya informed the group easily from the doorway, where she, her brother Graham, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Neville Longbottom, and Hannah Abbott stood, all looking amused by the topic. “It makes things interesting, especially when they decide to have a more tactical fight after all that time like they did today,” Maya continued.

“But you’ve told us that the way they fight their tactical fights isn’t the way to fight Death Eaters!” a young Hufflepuff, most likely only a third year, called out from where she was leaning against the wall, a bottle of water in her hand and a towel around her neck.

“Yes, we have,” Neville agreed with a smile, “but can anyone tell us why we have you learn to do practice battles that are more about being creative than about taking out your opponent as quickly as possible? Except for Brandon, since Maya already told you,” Neville added when Brandon went to open his mouth. Alex smirked as his friend’s mouth snapped shut before he let out a sigh of defeat, nodding his acceptance. “No one?” Neville called, and Alex thought about the question.

How would fighting against their friends while using crazy tactics that made them improvise help against Death Eaters? Alex almost hit himself as he realized his own mental question to himself had the answer within it.

“Because we learn to improvise while in the middle of a battle,” he suggested, and all eyes turned to him, almost making him back down before he saw his sister smiling at him and nodding encouragingly, most likely trying to tell him he was on the right track. “I mean, if we get used to the idea of having to think on our feet to dodge, cancel, and counterattack against the unexpected and abnormal, when it comes to a fight against Death Eaters, we’ll find it easy to dodge what they throw at us because we’re used to even crazier attacks. What Death Eater could compare to the Weasley twins, or Harry and Ginny and Tracey, or even Graham and Natalie and Euan?”

Around the room, many people laughed at his listing the various pranksters of Hogwarts, but there were also some thoughtful looks as they thought about his words.

“Alex is right,” Maya declared. “Despite the fact that we most likely won’t use most of these spells in battle, learning to fight against the unexpected helps you think on your feet and make instinctive reactions in just seconds that could save your lives. Plus, doing the research for those fights teaches you even more spells that you can use in battle. In the end, it’s only a benefit.”

No one had anything to say after that, and Alex watched as those with the colored Journals began to spread out around the room to help those who needed it. Before she went to Brandon, however, Maya slipped between those in the room to end up at Alex’s side, smiling at him.

“Good job, Alex,” she whispered, putting a hand on his arm. “Your explanation really hit the point home.” Alex could only look embarrassed, but Maya just smiled at him once more before disappearing into the crowd again, obviously off to find her boyfriend.

“Come on, smart twin, let’s fight,” Isabella suddenly called as she appeared across from him. “Let’s show this lot how to have a tactical fight like nothing else!”

Alex couldn’t help his smile as he pulled out his wand and faced his twin. Yes, things had been harder and quite different since his parents had become Death Eaters, but Alex found he couldn’t complain. He was enjoying this too much to care.

…

Lord Voldemort couldn’t help but be pleased as he heard screams echoing around the valley, emanating from the small village situated in it. Bursts of lights flashed — orange, green, blue, red, yellow, purple… Lord Voldemort knew they were all colors that caused pain, and he couldn’t help but smirk at the sight of it.

Just as the screams began to die down, mist filled the valley, and Lord Voldemort looked up to see the Dementors of Azkaban gliding down towards another village nearby, leaving his Death Eaters to their own pleasure.

These poor, helpless Muggles were the best treat for his forces to practice their spells on, and his newest recruits from just weeks before were doing well. Their memories showed great work and enjoyment of what they were doing, and Lord Voldemort was pleased.

So many dead… So many disgusting, terrible Muggles _dead_!

When Lord Voldemort thought of Muggles, the image of his worthless father with his black hair and dark eyes and handsome face came to mind, and it was all the Dark Lord could do not to lose his composure and kill everyone in sight. That man had abandoned him, abandoned his mother, and Lord Voldemort had been left alone, so very alone.

Well, he had taken his revenge many years ago, and now he would make sure the Muggles never destroyed the more powerful world by ridding the world of them, leaving only enough to make slaves of so that the Purebloods and even Half-Bloods didn’t have to do anything more than torture and kill the horrible Muggles.

Yes, Lord Voldemort was quite pleased by how the raids were going.


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight

Harry sat in the living room, actually a bit bored as he read a novel to relax for a bit. He had been hoping to talk to Remus about an idea for the Wolfsbane Potion, but Remus still hadn’t returned from his dinner date with Tonks out in Muggle London, despite the fact that they should have been back over an hour before.

Just as Harry was going to give up on waiting and go find Sirius to see if his godfather had any idea where Remus and Tonks were, the front door opened and the two walked in, their arms around the other’s waist.

Blinking in surprise, Harry sat up straight and looked at them, his brow furrowed. Why did they seem giddy and nervous at the same time? Something had most certainly happened while they were out… Both were pleased by whatever had happened, but they were also worried about the reaction to it, which didn’t bode well for Harry and the others when they found out what that was. The moment Harry knew something had happened that shouldn’t have, they were all going to be upset no matter what.

Then, a flash of gold caught his eye, and Harry’s eyes narrowed in on Remus’ left hand where, sure enough, he was wearing a wedding ring. Eyes widening in shock, Harry saw Tonks now had two rings on her left ring finger rather than one, and his shock slowly turned to anger.

“Remus! Tonks!” he exclaimed, just quiet enough that the others wouldn’t come running but loud enough to make the pair jump. “How could you after all these months of us talking about it? You said you were going to wait!”

“Harry, please, calm down,” Remus tried, but Harry had stood up and knew what he had to do.

“SIRIUS!” he yelled as loud as he could. “YOUR BEST MATE JUST WENT AND GOT HITCHED WITHOUT US!!!”

That certainly caught the attention of the entire Manor as everything was silent for a few moments before running footsteps could be heard, all converging on the living room, where Remus and Tonks had quickly moved to one of the couches near the door so that they had an easy escape from what was obviously going to be a very loud conversation.

“ _REMUS!_ ” Sirius yelled in indignation, looking furious as he saw that what his godson had said was turn. “How could you? This is me, your _best mate_! I should have been there! She’s my _cousin_! Were Ted and Andy even there?”

By this point, the room was filled with teenagers and adults, all looking at Remus and Tonks with a mixture of disbelief, shock, and anger. However, Sirius was, understandably, the most angry with the pair, since Remus was as good as his brother and Tonks was actually family.

“Sirius, if we weren’t there, then it’s obvious that Tonks’ family wasn’t there either,” Harry told his godfather, shaking his head sadly. “What _I_ want to know is _why._ ” He sent a dark look to the obviously newlywed couple.

“It was a… an unexpected decision,” Tonks admitted quietly, her hair brown rather than its usual pink. “We were walking along after dinner, and one thing led to another…”

“And you decided to get married without any of us there?” Sirius demanded angrily.

“I believe the term is eloped, Sirius,” Draco added helpfully, upset, gray eyes looking at the worried pair.

“You went and got _eloped_ without us there?” Sirius cried, the only sign that he had heard Draco’s words. “How could you?”

Harry suddenly had a thought, and he calmed instantly at it. “Padfoot?” he called in a cheerful voice that appeared to worry Remus and Tonks even more than his shock and anger had, most likely because it was his _I’m-Pretending-To-Be-Innocent-But-We-All-Know-My-Thoughts-Are-Anything-But_ tone.

“Yes, Harry?” Sirius growled, his dark gray eyes still on his best mate and cousin.

“Can I be the one to Floo Tonks’ parents and tell them to come over because their daughter has something she wants to tell them?” he requested with a growing smirk on his face. At that question, Sirius spun around to face him while Tonks and Remus paled even more then they had at the sight of the Manor’s residents appearing.

“Oh no, _I’m_ going to be the one to get cousin Andy and Ted,” Sirius declared, eyes narrowed and voice harsh in his anger. He then stalked out of the room towards where the Floo was housed, his footsteps easily heard in his anger.

Tonks looked as if she was going to stand and call him back, but Remus grabbed her arm and shook his head. Harry knew it was because Remus understood that all the pranksters in the house meant that they wouldn’t get away with this, and getting Tonks’ parents was just the beginning of the revenge they would be feeling before this was over.

Oh how true those words were.

…

In the final week of July, Tonks and Remus felt the anger of their friends and family. The night of their “wedding” had been filled with yells and arguments as everyone overcame their shock, each person wanting their opinion to be known. Remus and Tonks hadn’t been allowed out of the Manor since then except for Tonks going to work, and it didn’t seem like they were going to be free for the rest of the summer.

The couple was resigned to the idea of being pranked at every meal and anywhere in the house. They had been hung from the ceiling in separate parts of the Manor three times already, and despite Tonks’ Metamorphmagus abilities, they had been turned any and all colors the others could think of, not having seen their normal looks since before that night. It was also very obvious that Harry and Tracey had been supplying the others with what they requested when the two Slytherins were nowhere near the site of a prank and hadn’t been in over a day, yet the prank had signs of their talents.

In fact, if not for Harry and Tracey’s birthdays, Remus and Tonks would have most likely gone the entire summer dealing with pranks. However, the two teens who were about to become of age had declared that they wanted Marauder Manor to be a prank-free zone on their birthdays unless it was them, which the rest agreed to after a group prank that left Remus and Tonks unable to be within half a meter of each other, magic repelling them apart if they tried to get any closer. Much to the couple’s annoyance, this would last for an entire week, but it would also be the last full-scale prank on them, at least by the teenagers.

So it was on July 31st that the revenge ended as friends gathered at Marauder Manor for the first of two days, ready to celebrate the days the Alpha became a man and his Beta became a woman.

…

Harry was laughing as Graham sent a ball of mud flying, hitting Maya on the back of the head and covering her long, black hair with the brown, wet blob. The grounds around Marauder Manor were a mess as grass had been magically pulled away from a large area of it to create a field of mud, allowing for a war similar to their snow wars in the winter except with mud rather than snow.

“GRAHAM!” Maya yelled, spinning around rapidly, her wand already launching mud at her younger brother, but Natalie had been ready and opened the tunnel she had been making beneath Graham, allowing the Slytherin boy to fall into the ground before the mud hit.

“An interesting tactic,” Terry commented from beside Harry as they sat near the Manor.

They had decided to sit out for a bit to check on Terry’s family, consisting of his Ravenclaw cousin Danielle, his twin younger siblings Tammy and Michael, and his youngest brother Brian. Danielle was the only one of his cousins to come, mostly because she actually knew Tracey and Harry, but his parents had insisted his younger siblings join them so that Michael and Tammy could meet some of the older students before they went to Hogwarts.

“Yeah, but a great show of their teamwork,” Harry replied while still chuckling as Maya dragged her boyfriend, Brandon, over to another entrance to the tunnels that had been created so they could search for her brother and the girl who was basically her sister.

“True, true…” Terry agreed. “Man, there are a lot of us here,” he added after a bit, referring to Hogwarts students. “I can’t believe so many parents became Death Eaters.”

“Some of them are here because their homes got attacked,” Harry reminded Terry, looking over the large number of teenagers and preteens running around the yard, using their training to have a good time. There were at least fifty from Grimmauld Place alone, not counting Harry’s friends who were visiting or staying at Marauder Manor. “Still, let’s leave talk of the war out of this place. This is supposed to be a day of fun.”

“Well, then, let’s take my family and put them to good use,” Terry mused, pulling out and waving his wand while silently casting a few spells. In a few moments, he had taken a large patch of mud and turned it into small marble-sized balls that, when thrown, would expand into blasts of mud. It was perfect for kids too young to own wands to use for attacking those with wands. “Michael, Tammy, Brian!” Terry called, and all three raced over, Danielle right behind them.

“Yes, Terry?” Tammy asked, looking excited as she saw the floating marbles of mud, especially when Harry reached into a pouch on his waist and pulled out three smaller pouches.

“When Harry’s done putting these into the pouches, you’re going to follow us and Dani into the tunnels,” Terry informed his siblings. “If you throw the little balls of mud and hit someone, they’ll blow up with more mud than they look like they have. You’re our secret weapon because they won’t expect you three to be able to hit them with mud, okay?”

“Yes!” the boys cheered, pumping their fists in the air, while Tammy would have scared Harry a bit with her smirk if he hadn’t already gotten used to those smirks years before.

“Well then, boys and girls, let’s go remind these people what to expect from me on my birthday,” Harry declared, holding out the three pouches, which were greedily grabbed and attached to trousers with the spell on the back of them.

What happened after that was called later that evening the Attack of the Kids. When the other youngsters, still without wands for another two or three weeks when they would go supplies shopping, saw the Boot kids had a way to participate in the Mud War, they swore allegiance to Harry’s team and received pouches of mud marbles. From there, they ran into the tunnels and attacked anyone not wearing a Slytherin green cloth around their heads as headbands, which was changed to green with silver and black stripes when others began to catch on, gaining new colors as others tried to escape the attacks of the youngest there, who moved the fastest and could hide better than anyone without magic.

Other than Danielle, Terry, and Harry, the Hogwarts students on Team Harry expanded to include Tracey, Hermione, Hannah, Neville, Padma, Graham, Natalie, and Euan, who all brought their own additions to the team as a way to buy their way onto it. Ginny also slipped onto the team when she and Ron arrived halfway through the war, getting in for free as she was the final part of the trio of her, Harry, and Tracey.

Everyone came out of the war covered in mud, laughing, and excited. It had been a blast, despite the mess of it all. The youngest were congratulated by everyone, even their opponents, when the war was declared over by Harry and Tracey. No one could deny that they had been very creative in their use of the marble mud bombs, setting up traps and ambushes that not even the pranksters would have expected had they been the targets.

After that, however, it was declared that a swim in the pool was needed, so they all tracked mud through the Manor — “Oi! We’re not cleaning this up when it’s all said and done!” “Yes you are!” — and went into the basement, jumping right into the pool without changing. They only left the pool when they all felt they were clean enough to go change into their swimming gear, this time tracking water through the just-cleaned Manor — “Harry, get down here and clean this up!” “It’s your job, Padfoot! Get the lovebirds to help if you need it!” — as they found the various bedrooms and bathrooms to change in.

“This is fun,” Tracey told Harry as they watched their friends diving into the pool and chasing one another around with the water guns they found stored along the basement wall.

“Yeah, it is,” Harry had to agree, his hand moving to rest on her shoulder, knowing where her mind was. “They’d want us to be like this today and tomorrow of all days, you know. If we weren’t enjoying our seventeenths like we have been, they’d make us regret it at some point in time.”

“Yeah, all four of them would,” Tracey sighed, nodding just a bit.

“Come on, then,” Harry encouraged her, “let’s go make them proud.” With that, Harry took off at a run, jumping up just as he reached the edge of the pool and entering it with a perfect dive, leaving barely a splash behind him. When he reached the surface, he turned back to Tracey, who still stood there, and waved her over with a challenging smirk on his face. She caught the look and returned it with her own, running and jumping, also entering with a dive and barely a splash, just barely missing Harry in the process.

“How was that?” she gasped as she broke the surface, a grin on her face.

“Impressive,” Harry admitted with a small smile, his hands on her shoulders as he looked just past Tracey to see Theo aiming one of the largest water guns right at the back of her head. “Now, Trace, you need to trust me, okay?” Tracey nodded slightly, and it was all she could do to suck in her breath before he had dunked her under the water. He followed her immediately.

Her blue eyes looked at him accusingly through the water, magic acting like goggles for them both. He gestured with his head behind her, removing one arm from her shoulder, and she turned to see the familiar form of her boyfriend, his arms obviously holding a water gun. When she turned back around, her eyes were fierce and asking him if Theo had been about to fire when they went under, and Harry nodded easily in response. Her eyes turned mischievous as the idea of revenge took over her, and her hand touched the wand in its holster on her arm, Disillusioning herself with just a thought. Harry did the same as he understood what her idea was and followed, an invisible cord of magic that would never be too small connecting their left wrists added with his own thought.

Theo was spinning around, gun held in his arms, most likely looking down into the water for them. However, as they came up above the water almost halfway across the pool from Theo, he couldn’t spot them.

“What! Who’s there?” Natalie demanded in a harsh whisper, and Harry blinked as he realized that Tracey had surfaced by the other pranking trio, which was actually where Ginny had been the whole time, knowing he and Tracey needed a chance to talk in private.

“It’s Harry and Tracey, Nat,” Graham told her softly, and Harry smirked in amusement that he had figured it out instantly, without even having to think about it.

“What’s the plan?” Ginny asked, raising her hand so that Harry could add her to the cord of magic connecting him and Tracey together.

“Gin, join us underwater,” Tracey told her quietly as Harry’s girlfriend Disillusioned herself as well. “Euan, Natalie, Graham, distract my boyfriend with your water guns while we get into position, okay?”

“Sure, Tracey,” Euan agreed with a grin, lifting his two smaller water guns, both large enough for plenty of shots but small enough that he could hold them one-handed. Graham had a larger, two-handed water gun meant for long, continuous blasts of water that came out in large bursts. Natalie, on the other hand, had the water gun that was made for longer distance attacks, almost like a sniper. Between the three of them, they would be the perfect distraction.

As the younger trio began to move around the pool with a look of perfect ease on their faces, as if they weren’t about to take part in a girlfriend’s revenge on her boyfriend, Harry and the girls dove underwater, where Tracey led the way closer to Theo before surfacing again so they could plan.

“Harry, connect Ginny and me together,” Tracey ordered. “We’re going to trap him in the magic and then pull him under.” Harry grinned as he followed her orders, feeling for the girls’ right hands before casting the spell that would connect him. When they had surrounded Theo, Harry knew he would have to control the magic so that it stayed one length so that they could wrap it around Theo, but that would be simple.

“ _Argh_!” Theo yelled as Graham suddenly fired a large, ice-cold, charmed, blast of water at him, followed by Euan’s consecutive shots, which switched from one gun to the other, and Natalie’s longer-ranged attacks.

That was their signal, and Tracey led the way to Theo under the water, diving deeper to dodge his kicking legs when they reached him. Together, by tugging on the magic between them, they got into place in a triangle around Theo. Once they were right where Tracey wanted them, she tugged sharply on the magic, and Harry concentrated on all three strings of magic, controlling it so that it stayed at the length it was before shrinking slowly but surely, pulling all of them closer to Theo. A sharp tug from both girls stopped him, and they all quickly moved in and began tying up Theo’s legs and arms simultaneously when he dunked the gun underwater to refill it, pulling him under before he could react.

Theo’s brown eyes were wide in shock as he looked around quickly, trying to figure out what was going on. Harry and the girls released the Disillusionment Charm on themselves, and Theo seemed to be groaning silently without opening his eyes as he caught sight of them, his panicked movements stopped completely. Tracey gave him a smirk before turning to Harry, making a small cutting motion with her hand. He instantly released the spell that connected them, and all four swam to the surface, gasping for breath.

“That’s what happens when you try to hit your girlfriend with a water gun,” Tracey told Theo, gasping slightly. Harry only watched in amusement as the poor Slytherin nodded and moved closer to Tracey, whispering in her ear.

“That was fun,” Ginny commented from beside him as she waved to the younger prankster trio. Harry nodded as he flashed a grin at the trio, who looked pleased with their job well done. “Theo wasn’t expecting that at all, was he?” Harry shook his head in amusement.

“He was expecting retaliation until the moment Graham, Natalie, and Euan attacked him,” he decided. “When that happened, he got so distracted that the thought of them working with Trace and me didn’t even occur to him.”

“That’s so sad…” Ginny muttered in disappointment, shaking her head slowly and sadly.

“Yeah, well, it just goes to show that a well-timed distraction can make the difference,” Harry reminded her. “Come on, I’ve got an idea…” Harry led the way to where their younger friends were swimming, collecting the trio before pulling them to where those who hadn’t attended Hogwarts yet were playing around.

From that moment on, well, it was the Second Attack of the Kids.

…

After everyone cleaned up, the teens spread out throughout the living room, dining room and kitchen to eat a celebratory dinner. When they finished, all three rooms were filled with teenagers playing games. The dining room table was shrunken and taken from the room so that tables of various sizes could fill the space, housing games of chess, Risk, Monopoly, and a few other board games. The kitchen was where the card games were being played, with Poker the most prominent at three different tables. In the living room, Gobstones, Exploding Snap, and a tactical game Harry had been ordered to open right after dinner by the Weasleys sans Ginny that was similar to Wizards Chess, except it took place on a larger game board with castles and other surroundings, were all played. Adults were in each of the rooms, most taking part in the games, though the ones in the kitchen were also keeping a close eye on the poker tables so that none of the younger kids joined them.

The Manor was full of laughter and debate and yelling when someone won or moans when someone lost. It was a cheerful atmosphere, the likes of which had never been seen in it, though Grimmauld Place and Davis Manor had seen it before. For the first time since people had moved in, Marauder Manor was a place outside the war.

It was past eleven at night and nearing midnight before the atmosphere was finally broken. Those eleven and younger had been sent to bed at ten despite their protests, which had been silenced when Harry led them to his room and showed them the bunk beds that had been set up for them, letting the kids watch the walls of his bedroom until they fell asleep.

“Harry, Tracey, can you come here?” Remus asked the teens as he entered the kitchen. Harry looked up from where he was sitting at the only Poker game still going, Ginny sitting on his lap and hissing suggestions in Parseltongue for him, just barely keeping their lead. “The rest of you should come as well. Just put your cards in your pockets. You can finish the game after.”

Harry nodded and nudged Ginny off his lap, sliding his cards and money into the pouch next to his pile of money. Around the table, the other players were doing the same.

When they entered the living room, Harry was surprised to see everyone not asleep upstairs was sitting or standing around the room, leaving a place in the middle open for him, Tracey, Ginny, and Theo to go to. He didn’t know what this was about because he and Tracey had agreed to open their presents the next day at breakfast.

“What’s going on?” Tracey asked, most likely finding the silence as unnerving as he was.

“In just a few minutes, it’s going to be midnight,” Daniel informed them, and Harry turned to see that the clock on the wall did, indeed, say it was just five minutes until midnight.

“Last year, just after you left for school, those of us still here at Marauder Manor decided that we were going to do this at midnight this year, realizing it was only right,” Amelia continued a bit solemnly, worrying Harry. “We just didn’t expect… well, either way…” Amelia shook her head and couldn’t continue.

“Harry, Tracey, you’re both seventeen now, adults in our world,” Sirius took over, more serious than most of those in the room had ever seen him. “You both may or may not know of this tradition, but every witch or wizard receives a watch on their seventeenth birthday, and neither of you are an exception to this.”

Blinking, Harry glanced in Tracey’s direction and saw his surprise mirrored on her face as she looked towards him for a moment before they both looked back at Sirius.

“Tracey, your parents were hoping to be the ones to be able to give this to you, but as they can’t, we feel it’s only right that we do in their stead,” Samantha told her, holding out a silver package to her. “The last people to hold the watch inside this are your parents when they wrapped it last autumn.”

“And Harry,” Remus continued before Tracey could even move, “your parents had this made years ago, just after you were born. They knew that, no matter how you turned out, you would always be their son, and this watch fits their son perfectly. Sirius and I, having seen you grow up these past four years, going through pain and hardship like nothing anyone your age should, know that Lily and James would be so proud of you.”

“So very proud of you, Pup,” Sirius added as he held out a gold package.

Harry looked at Tracey out of the corner of his eye and saw she was just as shocked and pained as he was, but they both reached out and took the gifts with slightly shaking hands. They had never expected this, especially not him. Yes, they knew of the tradition, and yes, they had expected watches, but to find out that their parents had been the ones to buy these for them…

Ginny’s smaller hand suddenly rested on his shoulder, and Harry turned to her with a small, sad smile before turning to the gift in his hands. He slowly opened the wrapping paper and pulled out the white box inside of it. Taking a deep breath, Harry let it out slowly while lifting the top off the box.

In it was a gold wristwatch that looked like any other at first glance, but Harry studied it closely. Around the face of the clock, engraved into the gold, was his name, _Harry James Potter_. When Harry pulled out the watch and flipped it over, he let out an involuntary gasp at the picture engraved into the back of it. A young faun with its legs bent beneath it and its head leaning towards the ground, innocent eyes open, was being protected on either side by its parents. The stag looked proud as its antlers protected the faun from above, and the doe was nuzzling the faun lightly. There was even a lily on the side of the doe.

Tears in his eyes, Harry looked up to see Tracey holding her own gold wristwatch, also looking at the back. Together, they swapped watches and Harry saw a cat that looked identical to Tracey’s Animagus form engraved into the watch. It had obviously been done using a picture for reference as it looked exactly as she did with its head cocked to the side, looking at him as if to ask, “Well, now what?”

After returning Tracey’s watch to her and accepting his own, he looked around the room to see his friends, some close and some merely acquaintances and all in the HPs, were at least slightly emotional. They all knew how much these watches meant to him and Tracey after watching them earlier that year after Samuel and Daniella died. He didn’t feel even slightly ashamed of the tears running down his face as he silently thanked his family, the adults who had cared for him for years now; they didn’t even need to see his face to know how grateful he was, not after seeing his reaction.

As Harry slipped the watch over his left hand and let it magically adjust to the size of his wrist, Harry shared a sad smile with Tracey, feeling just a little bit closer to his parents after this, despite them being gone for almost sixteen years.


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine

Harry whistled as he looked around the Family Vault that he had never been permitted to see before this. It was August 2nd, and Sirius had agreed to take him to Gringotts.

“I didn’t realize the Potters had so much gold,” he commented off-handedly as he looked around. This vault, unlike the Family Storage Vault, was mostly filled with gold, though Harry could see a few documents and books in a corner.

“They’re one of the older Wizarding families for a reason,” Sirius reminded him in amusement. “Now, you can choose to keep the trust vault you’ve been using or send that gold back into this one and give it up.”

“I think I’ll keep it, maybe even replace the gold I’ve used over the years,” Harry decided easily, having been informed of the possibility by Draco the other day. “When I have kids that can be the vault they use until they get jobs and go off on their own.”

“A good idea,” Sirius commended him.

Harry walked towards the papers and saw that the largest book was a self-updating log of what was taken out of all three Potter vaults from his own to his trust vault to the storage vault. He claimed that immediately and glanced at the other documents, noting they were mostly copies of the deed to the cottage in Godric’s Hollow. The second book was a book meant for the representative of the Wizengamot for the Potters to write in to describe each meeting in a page-long summary. It went all the way back at least five hundred years with each decade marked with a marker so that it was easier to find the date wished. Harry also took that book, knowing he would be grateful for it in the future.

“I think that’s all I need from here,” he told Sirius, who nodded and led the way out of the vault.

Harry took one last glance at what had been left from him by his parents and allowed Griphook to close the vault behind him.

…

On his way to the tent in the yard, Harry glanced at the home that was the Burrow. From his vantage point, it didn’t look as if it had been unoccupied for almost two years, though Harry knew it had been up until two weeks ago when the wedding was in its final stages of preparations. Ginny had been ecstatic and her handwriting more sloppy when she told Harry and the others via Journal that they had returned to her home.

“Harry!” a voice called, and he turned to see the twins walking up to him and the others quickly.

“It’s so _fantastic_ to see you here on this most important day,” Fred continued as the two Weasleys reached the group from Marauder Manor.

Sirius and Remus were the only adults along for the wedding of Bill and Fleur, but all of the teenagers had been brought to celebrate the happy couple. Euan was the only one of the group not to have known Fleur from her year at Hogwarts, and even the young Gryffindor knew her well from all the time she spent at the Manor.

“Wouldn’t have missed it,” Harry replied with an easy smile while looking at the tent before them. “Nice setup. What’d your mother bribe you with to get you to help?”

“Oh, you wound us, Harry!” George exclaimed, placing a hand over his heart and pretending to be in great pain, Fred doing the same next to him.

“Why would she ever need to do that?” Fred questioned, still keeping his act up.

“Probably because, knowing you, you’d completely mess things up and not be wearing proper dress robes like you are if she didn’t,” Ginny commented as she walked up to the group, rolling her eyes. “And she threatened them with no meals from her for the next five years if they didn’t behave,” she added, earning many laughs from the teens as her older brothers glared at her. “Fred, George, just show them to their seats. I’m sorry, but I’ve got to go be with Fleur until the ceremony is over. I’ll see you soon.” With a quick kiss for Harry, Ginny headed back into the Burrow.

“That was fast,” Blaise commented in amusement as the twins sighed and gestured for their friends to follow them.

“Oi, lover boy, come on,” Theo called to Harry, who muttered curses under his breath in Parseltongue at Theo while following the rest.

…

“Harry Potter, it is good to see you again,” a deep voice said from behind the Slytherin as he made his way to his seat. Harry turned in surprise before grinning and holding out his hand.

“Viktor! It’s good to see you as well,” Harry exclaimed while Viktor Krum shook his hand. “How have the other Seekers been? Giving you a challenge, or are you still beating them too easily?”

“Some haff been giving me more trouble, but they still are not vorth much trouble,” Viktor replied in amusement. “You still hold the spot of biggest challenge for the Snitch.”

“Excellent,” Harry declared with an even larger grin, finally releasing Viktor’s hand and lowering his own.

“I haff heard from Fleur that you are very busy at Hogwarts?” Viktor asked, his hand lightly tapping his chest where his Journal most likely hung from the thick, gold chain Harry had sent him for his birthday over a year before to hold the book. “You do not talk vith me often.”

“I know, and I’m sorry about that, but it’s quite busy with the war going on,” Harry sighed, feeling more solemn now than he had just moments before. “Amelia — our Minister — is doing what she can, as are the Aurors, but Voldemort just keeps on attacking…”

“Yes, I haff heard,” Viktor agreed. “However, vhile you haff asked Fleur for help, you haff never come to me. Perhaps my contacts can be of assistance?” Harry looked at him curiously, wondering how much sway Viktor had over foreign Ministries due to his fame.

“Amelia hasn’t been able to get much from other countries, not even in the form of keeping the Death Eaters from getting onto the Continent,” Harry admitted. “Do you have any contacts high up in other Ministries that might be able to get their Aurors working on finding Death Eaters that leave Britain to recruit from other countries or just to cause chaos?”

“Many Ministers come to my games and talk vith me aftervards,” Viktor began slowly, obviously thinking about it. “They tell me to tell them if I ever need anything, anything at all, and they vill do their best to make it happen. Perhaps it is time to call in these promises. I will try to get them to protect those not in Britain from your Death Eaters, Potter, and perhaps get your Ministry some assistance from others for your Aurors.”

“Thank you, Viktor,” Harry told the Quidditch star, truly grateful. “Even if you only get the other Ministries to protect their own lands, it will be a huge help for us. We have squads of Aurors out in the Continent, searching for Death Eaters, right now, and it would make things easier to be able to pass those missions on to the locals so that we can recall them. With the increase in attacks, we have need of those Aurors here in Britain.”

“I vill do vhat I can, Potter, this I promise,” Viktor stated. “Now, vhat can you tell me about this Ron Veasley Hermione writes about in her letters?”

Harry laughed, remembering the time Hermione told him that she and Viktor kept in contact as normal friends, realizing the idea of them dating just wasn’t reasonable. Viktor had taken it well and was now a good friend to her.

“Well…”

…

Ginny smiled gently as her eldest brother and new sister-in-law were swarmed by well-wishers. She couldn’t help but be happy for them both.

Had Hogwarts been different during the Triwizard Tournament, Ginny had an odd feeling she wouldn’t have liked Fleur. However, the partially unified environment as well as friends, both male and female, willing to protect her had allowed the quarter-Veela Fleur Delacour to rid herself of the snobbish act she had picked up at Beauxbatons to stop the boys from trying to date her. This had allowed Ginny to meet the true Fleur, and she couldn’t help but like the blond woman, believing that she was a fantastic partner for her older brother, despite their age difference.

Arms wrapped around her waist suddenly, a chest against her back as she was pulled tightly to the person behind her, and Ginny leaned into the touch, closing her eyes. She didn’t even have to look to know that it was Harry; she knew his touch.

“Enjoying yourself?” she asked him, her tone light.

“I am now,” he replied in her ear, tightening his hold on her for just a moment. She could hear the smile in his voice.

“Really, Harry, are you enjoying yourself?” Ginny sighed, opening her eyes and turning her head to look at his face.

“I am,” he told her more seriously. “I got to speak to Viktor, and the war came up, but this is such a light atmosphere that it’s impossible _not_ to have fun.” Harry grinned a slightly crooked grin in her direction, and Ginny couldn’t help but smile at the sight. “Now, I believe the bride and groom are about to begin dancing, so we’ll be able to join them shortly.”

Ginny turned to see Bill and Fleur out on the dance floor, waiting for the music to begin. Everyone was surrounding the floor, watching the pair. It was hard not to be awed by them once they began moving oh so gracefully around the floor, never taking their eyes off one another.

“That will be us one day,” Harry promised in a whisper, her lips touching her ear as they moved. “Sometime in the future, we will have our closest friends and family in this very garden, possibly even under this very tent, dancing after saying our vows. By then, Tom will be dead, and the world will be at peace. We’ll have the time of our lives, and we’ll never forget it.”

Ginny turned to face her love, seeing the determination and love in his emerald green eyes as they locked onto her own. She knew in that moment that he would do _anything_ to make sure that day came.

“I love you,” she whispered, kissing him gently for his words.

“Love you, too, Gin,” he replied before offering his hand to go join her brother and new sister on the dance floor with other couples. She placed her hand in his, knowing that he would give her the time of her life tonight.

…

“Lily and James all over but without the fighting,” Sirius sighed, watching as his godson and the youngest Weasley joined other couples out on the dance floor.

“Yes… and no,” Remus replied. “They certainly look like Lily and James, but they’re not the same, not at all.”

“No, they aren’t, are they?” Sirius had to admit. Harry was so different from both his parents while still having what most viewed as the best of them in him, and Ginny, while similar in some ways to Lily, was vastly different. Their relationship was built on shared trauma followed by years of friendship that grew into love. The two of them clicked in a way that was just so very different from how Harry’s parents had been together, but both couples were breathtaking, despite the differing generations.

“It makes you miss them more, sometimes, doesn’t it?” Remus asked, giving Sirius a knowing look that Sirius turned away from. “I miss them, too, but it’s been a blessing to get to watch Harry, _their_ Harry, grow up like he has. He’s an amazing young man, and I know they’re proud of him.”

“Proudest damn parents up there,” Sirius agreed harshly, tears forming in his eyes as he remembered the wedding of Lily and James while watching Harry and Ginny dance at this one. “What else could they be?”

…

Albus Dumbledore stood to the side of the tent, looking around at the crowd. He had already spoken to those who wished to speak with him, and he was being left alone now in favor of enjoying the celebration.

It made him so very happy to see the love William Weasley and Fleur Delacour held for one another, just as he was so relieved to see the happiness and joy in the air despite the darkness of the war that surrounded them. Even young Harry, dancing with Tracey Davis at the moment, could be seen smiling and laughing, despite knowing the pressure on his shoulders to kill Voldemort and end this war. No, nothing could make Albus Dumbledore more pleased than seeing this light in the darkness.

There was just so much pain and sadness and loss right now, and Albus Dumbledore could see teenagers he was headmaster over at Hogwarts smiling and laughing and enjoying themselves like they hadn’t been able to all year long. Euan Abercrombie was laughing along with Natalie MacDonald, both dancing together, as Graham Pritchard danced with his older sister Maya and made faces in their direction over her shoulder. Draco Black, Blaise Zabini, and the Greengrass sisters, Daphne and Astoria, were sitting at a table with Butterbeer in hand, laughing and making jokes. Theodore Nott was dancing with Ginny Weasley close to where their dates were dancing, having obviously swapped partners for the dance. Even Sirius Black and Remus Lupin were enjoying the food as they talked to the eldest Weasleys, Molly and Arthur.

Albus Dumbledore just hoped that Tom Riddle would let them have this one day, this one memory, to make it through the next few months of the war, because days like these just didn’t come along every day.

…

Nymphadora Tonks-Lupin — though she only went by Tonks, thank you very much! — checked the monitors for Death Eater activity once more. She was being quite diligent about it today, knowing that her friends, family, and husband needed today to relax and enjoy themselves as the new term at Hogwarts would begin in just two and a half weeks.

No, Auror Captain Tonks wouldn’t allow anything to ruin that wedding if it was the last thing she did.

…

Arthur Weasley stood with his wife, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin, their conversation lulling as all four of them looked at the wedding around them.

Arthur couldn’t be more proud of his eldest son for finding love. Fleur Delacour was a wonderful young woman, strong and intelligent and hand-working. She would be good for his eldest, and it made him truly happy and at ease.

“Look at them, Arthur,” Molly whispered softly, and he turned to see that her face was both sad and happy at once. He followed her gaze and realized easily what had captured her attention. “They’re so happy, and we’ve been keeping them apart most of the summer for two years now, and even that summer he was with us… they were never like this.”

“They understand, Molly,” Remus assured her from her other side, and Arthur turned to look at the man. “Of course they’re upset about being apart, but they know why it is, and they accept it. Don’t be ashamed of trying to keep your children safe while they’re away from Hogwarts.”

Turning back to the couple, Arthur noted many others around them. His youngest son, Ron, was dancing with his fellow Gryffindor, Hermione Granger, looking more at peace than he had since before leaving for Hogwarts six years before. Many Slytherin friends of Ginny and the twins were paired up as well, and Arthur could even see a girl he swore was a Hufflepuff dancing with the young Longbottom boy, another Hufflepuff pair next to them. Three younger students were nearby, one holding a Butterbeer and smiling while the other two were dancing.

In his mind, these kids were all so comfortable with one another and were best friends. Together, they seemed to bring a spark to the wedding, making things that much more lighthearted than they already were. The bonds connecting them were almost tangible, made all the more obvious when the song ended and partners were changed without a word, the youngest boy passing his drink over to the other boy as he held the hand of the girl. His Ginny was in the arms of Draco Malfoy — no, Draco _Black_ — and he said something that made her laugh easily before they began moving with the music.

“They’re amazing to watch, aren’t they?” the calming, quiet voice of Albus Dumbledore asked from behind him, and Arthur turned to see the Headmaster watching the group as well. “It’s awe-inspiring to see the love shared between all of them, whether it is the love of lovers, siblings, or best friends. It brings hope to a person’s heart when one sees this sight, making us believe that, perhaps, the war isn’t going to destroy everything, not if something like this can still exist as it does.”

Arthur could only nod while returning his gaze to the group, slightly surprised to see Bill and Fleur in the middle of it, Bill dancing with his sister while Fleur was spun around by Harry. The red-headed father could tell just by the way Harry and Ginny’s gazes met when they could and by the small smiles they shared that he had already lost his daughter to the raven-haired Slytherin. If they both survived the war, those two would be together for the rest of their lives; of that he had no doubt.

“I’m honored to have been able to see it,” Arthur finally told Albus Dumbledore, and he could see the Headmaster’s nod of agreement of out the corner of his eye as they both watched the group of friends and family.

…

Tonks locked the last of the Death Eaters captured not far from the Weasley home into his cell herself. When she left the Ministry prison, she was met by Amelia.

“Were they enjoying themselves?” the Minister asked, and Tonks nodded easily. The Auror had taken a moment after the Death Eaters were tied up to check up on those she cared about at the wedding, and they had all been having an amazing time.

“Easily as happy as we’ve seen them since this began after the Third Task,” Tonks replied, and Amelia smiled, both in happiness and relief. Tonks could understand that, feeling the same way herself after seeing the wedding reception.

“Well, then, we’d best get some interrogators in here to question these Death Eaters before sending them to Azkaban,” Amelia declared, leading the way to the lifts.

…

Harry smiled as he spun Fleur around on the dance floor, Ginny off dancing with Euan now. The part-Veela had a look in her eyes that claimed she was on top of the world at the moment, happier than he had ever seen her. He was just happy seeing one of his friends so happy.

“Zank you for coming today, ‘Arry,” Fleur told him, and he just grinned while shaking his head.

“Wouldn’t have missed it for anything.”

The song ended, and Harry reclaimed Ginny as his partner, pulling her out of the crowd and over to the drinks table. They were both getting tired from all the dancing, and they knew it. However, they didn’t get enough chances to enjoy themselves like this, so they were taking it for all it was worth.

“I’m a bit surprised Tonks didn’t come,” Ginny suddenly mentioned, and Harry blinked.

“Oh, Amelia asked Tonks to head the Aurors tonight,” he explained. “Said that having someone with people here at the wedding would give her an edge. Plus, as Tonks said before anyone could complain, she’s got two left feet and would rather protect us than even dare to dance.” Harry paused for a moment as Ginny took this in, an idea coming to him. “You know, maybe it’s her two left feet that made Tonks pressure Remus into eloping — she didn’t want to embarrass herself at her own wedding.”

They both shared a look before they burst out laughing.

…

“That was fun,” Euan told Graham and Natalie as they headed upstairs to their shared room at Marauder Manor. “Did you _see_ Mrs. Weasley when the twins tried to prank Bill and Fleur?” The three youngest of the Manor laughed at the memory.

“Her face was so red,” Natalie gasped out, “I thought she could cook breakfast on it!”

“I wonder what she’s going to do to the twins for that,” Graham mused as he calmed down a bit.

“Oh, I believe the best way to get revenge would be to ask Ginny for help, but Mrs. Weasley would never think of it,” Euan heard Harry comment as he passed them on his way further up the stairs. “Now, off to bed, you three. You can continue this conversation in the morning.”

Once Harry was gone, Euan whispered to his two friends, “Silencing Wards on the room and then laugh up a storm?”

“Silencing Wards before laughing up a storm,” Graham and Natalie agreed together before the three of them tore down the hallway to their bedroom.


	30. Chapter Thirty

Brandon Harper stepped out of the Floo in Marauder Manor with the ease of one who has done it for many years, hanging his cloak on the hook near the door before leaving the room. He then walked slowly through the large home, knowing where he was to go but wishing to take his time to get there.

There was a tension in the air, an unease that Brandon couldn’t seem to escape. It surrounded him at Grimmauld Place, and it suffocated him here. The darkness brought about by the war had its claws digging into this home, unwilling to leave it despite the happiness its occupants brought to those who met them.

He knew from Maya that Marauder Manor hadn’t always been like this, that the home of Harry Potter and Tracey Davis and those closest to them wasn’t always so suffocating, but it was hard to accept when the home felt like this. They lived with it because it was their home, because they had to, but him? To him it was like thinking of returning to his family home where his parents were Death Eaters and were willing to do despicable things, even to him — unbearable.

Maya had told him that the summer after the Third Task, back when Lord Voldemort was hiding, had been the best summer to come to Marauder Manor. Before that, either Grimmauld Place or Davis Manor had been the place to go — or so it was said by Draco and Theo and Blaise and even Daphne and Astoria.

According to those who spoke to him the most — Maya, her brother Graham, and Natalie — ever since the death of the two Davises, Marauder Manor had been affected by the war more than ever before, and nothing that was done could push away this suffocating darkness that loomed above them.

Brandon shook his head to force away the thoughts, his feet having brought him to the door that led to the basement without his conscious thought. He opened the door and stealthily made his way down the steps, stopping and sitting down once he could see into the room below.

The swimming pool was completely devoid of people, all of the teenagers were on the other side of the basement, training fiercely. Spars sent sound around the room with the blasts of spellfire, clashes of metal against metal as swords met, hums as various objects flew through the air, and thumps as things hit the ground, humans among them. Bodies glistened with sweat, and the sound of panting filled the room.

Thinking back to his thoughts from a few moments ago, Brandon couldn’t help but note that the tension and darkness and sadness and determination in this room were thicker than anywhere else in the Manor. These teenagers, all so very affected by the war around them, were pushing themselves harder than almost anyone else in Wizarding Britain. It was painful to watch, knowing how happy and carefree these people had been just three years before as they arrived at Hogwarts and created the Hogwarts Den, uniting all three schools during the Triwizard Tournament and gaining more support from the older students of Hogwarts. Now, however, now they were so very serious and so determined to win, even if it meant losing their childhoods, their happiness, and their lives.

Finally, after watching almost every person in the room stagger at least once, if not at least half a dozen times, Brandon pulled out his wand and fired off a wide-ranged spell to freeze them all in their places. “Enough,” he called down in a calm voice that carried throughout the now-silent room.

He finally stood up and walked all the way down the stairs, looking into the eyes of each one of the leaders of the Hogwarts Protectors but Maya’s, knowing he would be alone with her soon enough.

“You’re all exhausted,” he told them, knowing that their eyes were on him. “If this went on for another five minutes, at least half of you would have collapsed, if not more. That wedding you went to, it was only three days ago, yet this is what happens after so much happiness? I heard you lot had the time of your lives there, got to let loose. Is this what you do when you’ve had fun — train so hard that you can’t even remember the good times within the darkness? If so, then it’s no wonder you’re so good; you’re not even normal humans anymore. Humans live, not just train to fight and most likely die. _Live, have fun, enjoy what you have_!”

Brandon shook his head and turned back to the stairs, waving his wand over his shoulder to free them as he did so. Behind him, the others began to move, though they did so slowly, and Brandon knew that he had gotten through to them. They needed to be snapped out of this live-or-train-never-both zone before they returned to school, and hopefully this had done it.

“Thank you,” Professor Lupin — who asked to be called Remus, but that was hard to do after a year of having him as a professor — told Brandon as he closed the basement door behind him. “They needed to hear it from someone their age, someone they teach, not from one of us.”

“Yes, they did,” Brandon agreed with a nod before turning towards the stairs. He knew Maya would come find him eventually, so he made his way to her bedroom, hoping that he had made a difference, and perhaps, the tension might loosen its grip on Marauder Manor, at least slightly.

…

After Brandon’s pep talk, the teenagers trained less and relaxed more, even if it just meant reading a book or sleeping in a bit later. Harry could tell that this relieved the adults, and he realized it had been them who had asked Brandon to come and speak to him and his friends, to try and slap some sense into their brains.

The unfortunate truth was that they had needed that, but Brandon had understood and hadn’t brought it up again, which made it easier to move on and live.

…

Amelia couldn’t help but sigh as she stood in her office, looking out the magical window. Her window was showing her a view of London that one would have seen from the top floor of a very tall building.

Voldemort had been attacking without holding back on villages and towns throughout Britain, killing hundreds and even thousands. Yes, many Death Eaters had been captured or killed during the raids by Aurors, but so many Muggles and Magicals had been killed in the process, families torn apart. Between children running away from parents who had turned to Voldemort and families being killed while giving their children time to escape, there were simply so many without their families anymore, most living in Grimmauld Place so that they were protected and not alone. It was a heartbreaking sight to see — so many children, some not even Hogwarts age yet, all living together and training to fight the Death Eaters, scared but determined.

A knock on the door interrupted Amelia’s thoughts, and she turned, her back now to the window, calling, “Enter!” Director Shacklebolt entered.

“I’m sorry for the intrusion, Amelia, but I believe you’ll find my news to be a great relief,” Kingsley told her in his calming voice, moving to sit in the seat across from hers at her desk, a folder in his hands.

“There was no intrusion,” Amelia told him as she sat with an inaudible sigh. “I was just looking out at the view. Now, what’s this news that you bring?”

“Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, Russia, and basically all the countries of Europe have all given orders to their Aurors to find our search teams, learn what their missions are, and complete them,” the Auror informed her easily, looking just as relieved and happy as she was. “The Ministers have all decided to take a stand within their own countries to stop Voldemort’s forces. France, Spain, and Norway have all agreed to send twenty-five Aurors each, all to be under our command, with Germany, Sweden, and Italy still deciding on the numbers they wish to send. The other nations have realized the danger of Voldemort and are prepared to help us how they can.”

Amelia was in shock as she heard this. She had been sending out requests for assistance since taking over for Fudge with none being offered, but then again, her predecessor had never been kind to the other nations. However, this sudden change of heart was both shocking and a huge relief. Sending Aurors out to other countries just to keep Death Eater activity down had left Britain with a smaller force and less defense, but now, they would be able to not only recall those Aurors but also receive new ones.

“Do you know what caused this change of heart?” Amelia had to ask, though she didn’t believe Kingsley would if she had none.

“I’m sorry, Amelia, but they gave no reason outside of their suddenly realizing the danger all of Europe would be in if Voldemort isn’t stopped here in Britain,” Kingsley replied, looking apologetic for not having anything more to offer. She waved his apology off easily.

“It’s quite fine, Kingsley, I don’t blame you,” Amelia stated. “I’m just trying to get over the shock of their sudden change of heart. For now, however, I’d like you to recall all Aurors from the Continent, ordering them to first go to the local Ministry and share all information they may have. Then, figure out how to utilize both those Aurors and the foreign ones into the schedules. Show me when you’re done.”

“Of course, Amelia,” Kingsley said as he stood, placing the folder he had brought with him on her desk before quickly leaving the office.

Once he was gone, Amelia sank back into her chair, unsure of how to take this new information. She truly had no idea how this had come to happen, but she was very grateful for it either way. This was almost a miracle for her, as she had actually been thinking of sending out Aurors not finished with their already rushed training just to replace the numbers of injured or dead Aurors from the battles they had been in. Now, however, there would be no need for it. It was as if someone had been acting on her worries and needs and given her what she needed…

A thought passed through her mind, and Amelia sat up straight before standing and moving quickly to her protected Floo, kneeling on the well-cushioned floor before it. Taking a pinch of Floo powder, she threw it into the fire created by her wand. Once the flames were green, Amelia stuck her head into them and called out, “Marauder Manor!” It didn’t take long for her head to be sitting in the Floo of the Manor, and footsteps were soon heard as the normal alarm for a Floo call went throughout the house, purposely skipping over the basement after the teenagers had gotten sick of all the Floo calls, since most were for the adults anyway.

“Amelia, is something wrong?” Sirius asked as he looked into the room and saw who it was, stepping in completely to kneel by her face.

“Yes, I need to speak to that godson of yours,” she told him, her voice hard to emphasize her point.

“Of course, let me go find him,” Sirius replied, standing and swiftly moving from the room, calling for Harry as he did. It only took a couple of minutes for Harry to enter the room, looking surprised and confused.

“You called for me, Amelia?” he questioned, sitting down before her rather than kneeling.

“I just received some very interesting information from Kingsley Shacklebolt,” Amelia informed the seventeen-year-old. “He came to my office to tell me that Britain is now getting foreign aid despite my trying for a year to ask for some. Do you have any idea how this suddenly happened?”

“Viktor,” Harry whispered with both a surprised and pleased look on his face, the surprise quickly giving away to a smile. Amelia was surprised, realizing he was speaking of Viktor Krum.

“Viktor Krum did this?” she demanded, and Harry blinked, looking down at her face again. He then nodded quickly.

“Viktor offered to see what his contacts could do when we spoke at the wedding last week,” Harry explained. “I told him one of our biggest concerns was the lack of other countries dealing with any Death Eaters in their own nations, and he said he would call in some promises and favors to see if he couldn’t get them to at least defend their own land, perhaps even getting us some more Aurors. It appears his connections have paid off.”

“Even better than I could have hoped if I had known of this,” Amelia admitted. “We’ll be getting seventy-five more Aurors within days, more to follow soon after, and all of Europe is now willing to send their Aurors out to capture any Death Eaters that enter their countries. I will most likely be working more closely with foreign Ministries to give them information and even assistance when it is required.”

Amelia paused, allowing Harry to take all of this in and feel some pride for bringing this about before bursting his bubble. “I’m quite grateful for what you did, Harry, but next time, some forewarning would be nice.” Amelia raised an eyebrow to go with her slightly sarcastic tone, and Harry blushed but didn’t look away from her.

“I am sorry, Amelia, but I wasn’t sure if Viktor would pull through or not, so I didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up,” Harry explained. “He was going to be working off of promises made by other Ministers to try their best to get him anything he might need, most of those promises given after Quidditch matches. It was always possible they wouldn’t do this for him because they don’t really want to get involved in a war that doesn’t involve them.”

“Viktor must have persuaded them, because most gave the reason for their sudden change as realizing this war would affect them if it wasn’t stopped here in Britain,” Amelia told him, hoping that may help his thoughts, and Harry nodded slowly.

“That sounds like Viktor,” Harry sighed with a smile. “He didn’t go to Durmstrang for no reason. If he had been at Hogwarts, he would have been a Slytherin, and this just proved it.”

“Well, thank you for doing this, and please pass on my gratitude to Viktor,” Amelia decided, knowing she needed to get back to work. “I’ll see you lot this evening.”

“Bye, Amelia!” Harry called as she pulled her head out of the Floo.

Amelia stood and stretched out her body for a moment before returning to her desk. She now had quite a bit of paperwork to deal with, but at least that was one thing she didn’t have to worry as much as before about. It was a great relief that took some of the pressure off of her shoulders without a doubt.

…

Harry sighed in annoyance as he caught sight of Remus moving towards the corner of the library, walking past it himself on his way to the stairs. School would be beginning in two weeks, and both Remus and Tonks had been hiding from everyone in the Manor — including one another.

It was getting quite annoying, watching them carefully avoid the eyes of everyone around them. They had taken to keeping to the corners of rooms and trying to find the emptiest rooms they could. All of this just made it quite obvious that they were hiding something, and each of them was hiding something different. While the two of them might know what the other wanted no one else to, the rest of Marauder Manor was slowly being driven crazy after just three days of this.

“Draco,” Harry called as his blond friend, basically a brother to him, walked past nearby, stopping him. Draco looked up at him curiously. “Can you find the others and tell them to meet in the basement?”

“Sure,” Draco replied with an easy shrug, moving quickly to the stairs and beginning his search for the others downstairs. Harry then headed to the Wizengamot Study, knowing some of his friends were in there, to retrieve them before heading to search where Draco hadn’t. Soon enough, everyone was in the basement, a Privacy Charm blocking any sound from traveling up the stairs.

“Now that you’ve called us here, Harry, what’s up?” Theo asked lazily from where he was sitting on the ground, his back to the wall and his feet straight out in front of him.

“Remus and Tonks,” was all Harry said in reply. He then watched in amusement as his friends reacted, some nodding, some groaning and moaning, a few rolling their eyes, but all of them obviously annoyed with the pair.

“We don’t even know what they’re hiding,” Harry continued when they had all calmed down. “I was thinking, perhaps we can get them both into the same room and force it out of them?”

“How would we manage that?” Blaise asked seriously, and Harry could tell with a single look around the group that they wanted to do this as much as he did.

“The girls can handle Tonks while we blokes take care of Remus,” Harry decided easily. “Get them both into… the study. Remus will be easy; just tell him we have another law for him to look over. You girls, though, you might have to lie to get Tonks there.”

Daphne waved her hand in the air with a look of having no care in the world, sitting with her back against one of the training dummies along the wall. “Tracey will go to the study now, and the rest of us will just tell Tonks that we believe the two of you have pranked the entrance again. If we tell her we really need to get in but you two won’t let us, she’ll come to try and help. From there, well, it’s not that hard to push a person into a room, is it?”

Harry just shook his in amazement at the way Daphne’s mind worked. “Well, then, I guess we’ll meet in the study in… five minutes?” Everyone agreed, and they all headed up the stairs, everyone but Tracey, who headed to the study, breaking up into the pairs to search the Manor for the couple.

…

Euan pushed aside the neat piles of Muggle paper in folders, trying not to knock them over. When a large enough clear spot had been made, he jumped onto the desk so that he could sit on it, picking up a Muggle notebook and lazily flicking through the pages, skimming them. This was one of the notebooks on ways to get Muggle-borns involved in the Wizengamot sometime in the future, it seemed.

Placing the notebook back on the desk, Euan looked around the Wizengamot Study. Harry stood in the middle of the room with his arms crossed, giving Remus and Tonks, who were both tied to chairs, a dark look. Natalie and Graham were sitting on one of the other desks in the room, Graham giving one of the textbooks next to him a dark look. Neville was leaning against the wall near the door, his arms also crossed. Astoria wore a smirk where she was relaxing in a large armchair, looking quite comfortable. Draco and Theo were the only two sitting behind any of the four desks in the room, Blaise and Daphne each sitting on one of them. The rest had all conjured chairs or taken them from around the room, except for Tracey, who was leaning easily on the only couch in the room, the rest having been transfigured during a prank war a couple days before.

“Okay, we’re all sick and tired of this,” Harry told Tonks and Remus. “You’re going to tell us what’s going on, and you’re going to say it now.” He didn’t raise his voice, but the emphasis on his words and the obvious anger hidden in his tone made Harry someone that Euan knew should be obeyed right away.

Tonks and Remus shared a look, both staying silent. It seemed to Euan that both were afraid to speak for fear of what the other would say about it. Perhaps they weren’t hiding the truth from the rest of the Manor but from each other.

“Okay, Remus, you first,” Harry declared when he saw, just as Euan did, that neither knew who would go first. Remus sighed and lowered his gaze, but he spoke from that position.

“Amelia has told you that your Hogwarts letters should be arriving tomorrow, correct?” Remus questioned, and Euan nodded along with the rest of the group. Yes, Amelia had told them that last night. The letters always seemed to be late, from what Euan gathered, all because of the lack of Defense professors.

“Last week, the Headmaster wrote to me,” Remus admitted, and Euan could see his shocked look reflected on the other faces in the room. “He needed another Defense Professor and wanted me to return.”

“Wait, what about Professor Snape?” Harry demanded. He was most likely asking because he was the only student in the entire school who had the best relationship with the professor, except for perhaps Draco.

“Professor Slughorn declared that he had only signed up for one year and left, allowing Professor Snape to reclaim his old position,” Remus explained, still not looking up. “In any case, I told the Headmaster I would return, knowing you students need a good professor this year to help cover up your training. However, I didn’t speak to anyone else about it, and…”

“And Tonks found out,” Tracey finished, her voice full of sympathy for the couple as well as understanding. Euan felt the same things, finally understanding why they had been avoiding one another the past few days.

“Tonks, what have you been keeping to yourself?” Harry asked, and Euan blinked. Taking a closer look at the Metamorphmagus, Euan saw that she was avoiding everyone’s eyes, finally looking down towards her stomach.

“I know that Remus didn’t want this to happen, but…” Tonks shook her head, looking up while biting her lip, facing Remus and meeting his gaze. “I’m pregnant.”

Euan didn’t see anything _bad_ about being pregnant, and he could tell that most of those in the room felt the same way, but Remus had stiffened and had a pained look on his face. Harry had stood up just a bit straighter at the news, his head turning to look straight at Remus.

“ _This_ is why you’ve been avoiding everyone, Remus?!” Harry demanded loudly, and Euan could see that he was absolutely _furious_. “Just because you’re a werewolf does not mean that your child will be!”

_Oh_ , Euan thought. _That’s why Remus has been hiding away and Tonks has been very quiet lately…_

“My kind doesn’t normally have children!” Remus exclaimed, raising his voice like he rarely ever did. “We have no idea what could happen to my child because I’m the father. I’ve most likely doomed my own child with my curse!”

“Or you could have given him some of the traits of a werewolf in human form and nothing more!” Harry yelled right back, everyone else in the room watching, unable to speak. “That baby is your _child_ , Remus, your _CHILD_! Would you turn your back on him or her? Would you, the best friend of my father, who sacrificed himself just so my mother and I could have a chance to live, truly leave your child alone without a father just because you’re a _coward_?”

Euan saw movement in the doorway and turned his head enough to see that the yelling had caught the attention of the rest of the Manor. Sirius had tears in his eyes as he looked on; Amelia, Daniel, and Samantha watching with worried or blank faces from behind him.

Remus was straining against the magical ropes that bound him to his chair, his eyes also tearing up like Sirius and Harry’s, his face furious. Tonks, next to him, was looking hopefully at Harry, perhaps thinking he could yell some sense back into her husband, but she also appeared to be sad. Tracey had stood and moved to stand next to Harry, her face blank but her blue eyes saying everything she could ever want to say, silently reminding those who could see her face of the pain she had been going through for the past six months with her parents gone.

Finally, Remus slumped down into his chair in defeat. “You’re right,” he whispered. “James… James would be as furious as you are if he was here, not to mention how Lily would react.” Remus turned to look at Tonks. “I’m sorry I’ve been a terrible husband these past few days. Whatever happens to our child due to my condition, we’ll deal with it together.”

“And you’ll have help,” Sirius declared harshly, wiping his tears away as he moved towards his best mate, his strides longer than normal. “Why didn’t you both just _tell_ us?”

“Because they were both afraid to deal with this,” Neville stated from where he was still leaning against the wall. “That and I believe Remus didn’t want to admit he wouldn’t be here until next summer because he’s the Defense professor again.”

Sirius spun around to look at Remus again as Harry waved his wand, freeing both of the trapped adults. “Remus, you _traitor_!” Sirius yelled. “Bad enough you did it once, but _twice_? How are you still a Marauder?!”

Everyone began laughing, and Euan saw the tension that had grown the past few days dissipate. The girls began congratulating Tonks while the guys slapped Remus on the back. Euan stayed where he was, watching with a small smile on his face.

He was looking forward to getting to see Remus in action as a professor. Except for Graham and Natalie, everyone in Marauder Manor had had him when he had taught three years ago, and everyone who had ever had him agreed that he had been the best official Defense teacher they’d ever had. Of course, everyone loved the HP training even more, but when it came to the actual class, Professor Lupin had taken the top spot within his first month there. It would be great to see him in action.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Professor Lupin is back! Hope you enjoy Remus being at Hogwarts again. ;)


	31. Chapter Thirty-One

Natalie shut her notebook with a sigh, and threw her pencil down onto her desk in frustration. Covering her face with her hands, she placed her elbows on her desk, rubbing her eyes slowly.

This idea of hers had come to her weeks ago, not long after summer had started, and she had spent the rest of the summer working on it, researching in the library whenever she wasn’t with Graham or Euan. No one had questioned her about reading books that were way too advanced for her, and she had offered no answers, just continued to look and write notes in her notebook, which had been spelled to only be read by her and those with permission, meaning only herself for the moment.

Now, however, with a week and a day before term started and their shopping trip the next day, Natalie knew it was time to ask some of the older teens for help. The most likely to be able to help would have to be Hermione, so Natalie picked up her pencil and notebook and set off to try and find the older Gryffindor.

It wasn’t really all that hard to do as Hermione was in the library yet again, reading information to help her with her homework during the upcoming school year. Honestly, Natalie was a bit surprised Hermione hadn’t already read every single book in the library, but she guessed it had to do with training and no one allowing the bookworm to stay in the library for hours on end like she most likely wanted.

“Hermione,” Natalie began quietly, and Hermione looked up quickly, gesturing for Natalie to sit down across from her. “I had this idea a few weeks ago, and I’ve been trying to figure out how to make it work, but… I just can’t figure it out.”

“Can I see what you have so far?” Hermione asked kindly, and Natalie passed the notebook over. Hermione picked it up and began reading Natalie’s notes, her eyes widening in surprise as she read more and more. “When did you think of this idea?”

“I think it was a week or two after term ended,” Natalie replied. “Amelia was going on about communications with other Ministries, and it hit me that the one thing we’ve never thought about for an invasion of Hogwarts would have to be how we would communicate during the battle to know what to go. I mean, if we’re planning on having people with Marauders Maps somewhere in the castle to watch over the battle, we should be able to get messages from them, right?”

“This is a really good idea, and your research is sound, but there’s something missing from this,” Hermione admitted as she flipped through it all again. “Your idea of the Protean Charm is certainly a possibility, as is finding a way to use the Journals because they already have so much connecting magic in them, but you’ve already found that neither would work well enough during an intense battle… Hm…”

Natalie watched as Hermione’s face grew more and more thoughtful as she mumbled to herself. Suddenly, Hermione stood up and stalked into the rows of books, returning minutes later with three and quickly flipping through them. She found the pages she wanted easily enough, but as she ran a finger down the pages, Hermione kept on shaking her head before closing the books.

“No… no… That wouldn’t work like that. It would only mess it up…” Natalie heard Hermione mutter as she closed the third book and stood to return them all, only to come back with five more.

Awed at the speed Hermione worked at, Natalie just sat and watched the bushy-haired researcher for a full hour. Hermione ran all around the library, pulling out books and returning them when they didn’t hold what she wanted or needed. In the end, Hermione didn’t seem to have anything and was obviously frustrated, her face etched in a scowl.

“Your idea is an excellent one, but to make communications happen needs something special, Natalie, and I’m just not sure what to do,” Hermione finally sighed, looking at Natalie in defeat. Natalie slumped down in her seat, upset that her idea hadn’t been good enough to happen. “Maybe we should talk to Padma and Terry,” Hermione suggested, and Natalie nodded, still feeling defeated. “Natalie, why don’t you go find them? And don’t feel bad about this; it’s quite possible it could work, but it will take a lot of work, okay?”

Smiling a bit, Natalie nodded and hurried out of the library, glad to be able to move around and help again. She checked the Wizengamot Study, the kitchen, the grounds, and the living room before going down into the basement to find the Ravenclaw pair training down there. Both had come to spend the weekend here so that they could go to Diagon Alley with their friends the next day, the rest of their families planning on joining them there.

“Hermione needs you both in the library,” Natalie told them when they stopped training to face her. “I gave her an idea, and she can’t figure out how to make it work. She said it will take a lot of work and help.”

“We’ll be right there. Give us a chance to clean up, change, and put this stuff away,” Terry told her, and Natalie nodded before heading back to the library, passing the response onto Hermione, who accepted it easily.

“I didn’t expect them to come here right at this very moment, not in this house,” she explained when Natalie looked surprised. “We’re all so busy most of the time here, as you very well know.” Natalie nodded and settled down into the armchair she had asked Hermione to transfigure her normal chair into earlier, ready to wait.

In the ten minutes it took for the Ravenclaws to reach the library, Hermione had found another four books and finished looking through two of them. Natalie had actually pulled out her Journal and found many of her friends were using their own, so she opened a conversation and wrote to them about how “the famous Professor Lupin” would be teaching them Defense that year.

“What is it that you called us for, Hermione?” Padma asked as she and Terry suddenly sat down to Natalie’s right, surprising her as she hadn’t been paying that much attention to the doors.

“Natalie had an idea for an attack on Hogwarts that we never thought of,” Hermione began, and Natalie blushed a little under the gazes of the three older students but didn’t look down at her Journal as she listened. “We’re going to need a way to communicate during the battle if one occurs, and she researched as many ways as she could for them to work, but none of them would work. Now it’s our turn to try and find some ideas.”

Padma and Terry nodded in understanding, and Hermione began explaining the various ideas Natalie had found and examined before explaining the ones she had been researching herself. Once Hermione had gone past her own research, Natalie got very lost very quickly and decided it would be better to go back to her Journal rather than try and figure out magic that was quite beyond her knowledge still. She wished she could follow the conversation, but she realized that to actually make her idea work would take magical knowledge beyond her understanding, so she was willing to allow the others to work on this without her, just pleased in the knowledge that she had thought of a useful idea.

Another hour passed with the three seventh years passing ideas back and forth while Natalie wrote in her Journal, answering questions about the HPs and the war and other things she could actually answer. From what Natalie actually understood about what was being said around her, the three teenagers were discussing spells that might be used to connect people so that they could speak to one another, but none of them were instant, which would be a major problem in a fight where information had to be constant or a person could die. The possibility of watches with small arrows to show where Death Eaters were, all controlled by a single, large watch was also mentioned, but they vetoed the idea as being too vague.

In the end, they were still nowhere when it came to figuring this out, and they were all getting frustrated by the lack of workable ideas. They were about to give up on the idea when Justin walked into the library, looking for a book on Charms.

“Justin!” Hermione called. “Can you come over here for a second? We’d love another opinion.”

“What are you doing this time?” he asked with a sigh as he slowly joined the group and slumped down in his chair. Natalie gathered these three did this often to him, and he didn’t like it.

When the situation and already discussed ideas had been explained to Justin, he responded by asking, “Have you spoken to Harry and Tracey about whether the Journals could be used for this?”

“Well, no, we haven’t, but we don’t really think the Journals would help with this,” Terry told him. “The Journals might be able to be used to distinguish between people, but otherwise, there are just too many spells on them to add yet another, at least another large one. Besides, they’re for writing, not speaking. Anything said to them would be on paper because of the spells already on the Journals. No, it just wouldn’t work.”

“Okay, that makes sense,” Justin admitted. “What if you just use the Journals to give a connection, though? I mean, they’re already connected, so you could add something to them and use the connection to reach the addition.”

“The problem is finding something that works well with the magic already on the Journals, sort of like finding the right battery that fits into an electronic,” Hermione sighed. “We might need three or four different things just to make the magic work right, and we can’t really expect it to work all the time like that.”

“True…” Justin muttered, shaking his head with his eyes closed. “Why not just ask Remus for help? He’s the most likely to have an idea…” The three shared looked, all obviously surprised by the easy idea in Natalie’s mind, before turning to her.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll go find him,” Natalie sighed, getting out of her chair and stretching. She left the library and went down to the kitchen, finding Remus in there with a bar of chocolate in hand, talking with Tonks. Rolling her eyes at Remus’ obsession, Natalie found a bottle of water as well as a glass bottle of Butterbeer, both cooled by magic. After finding some crisps and biscuits, Natalie finally turned to Remus.

“Hermione, Terry, Padma, and Justin need your help in the library,” she told Remus easily. He nodded and, with a kiss for Tonks, headed towards the library, Natalie following him and settling back into her chair when they arrived there.

Again the situation was explained, and Natalie began doodling in her Journal, which she had deactivated as she had grown tired of answering the same questions over and over. She began drawing three cats, using her memory to get them right because they were her, Graham, and Tracey. The three cats were chasing one another in a game of tag, the largest cat, Tracey, running after the two smaller ones, her and Graham.

“Well, as it’s been said, these are all very solid ideas, but this idea needs something much more flexible, not something straightforward like a normal spell,” Remus was saying as Natalie finished her picture and looked up, tuning back into the conversation again. “Honestly, though, I’m not really sure what sort of spell this would need.”

“That’s because you’re looking at this too logically,” a somewhat dreamy voice said from Natalie’s left, making said girl jump as her head snapped around to see Luna looking down at her drawing. “Your drawing is very good, Natalie. Very realistic. If I just do this…” Luna poked the drawing with her wand, and suddenly, the cats were moving just as they would in real life. “Ah, much better.”

“Thanks, Luna!” Natalie told her, smiling up at her friend.

“It’s no problem,” Luna replied. “The Woolunks told me I would need to do that when I got here. They also told me that some people in here were being too narrow-minded again, and I see what they meant. You’re looking at this from a very logical viewpoint, but something like this needs to be less logical and more creative. If I wanted to find creativity, I would go to the Alpha and his Beta, myself. I hope you figure this out.”

With that, Luna skipped out of the library, placing her wand behind her ear again.

“What did she mean?” Hermione almost demanded, looking around at the group. As Natalie looked around, she could see that Remus had an idea while the others were completely lost.

“If I had to name a pack, I would say everyone with a colored Journal and Euan,” Remus told them. “The Alphas would most certainly be Harry and Ginny, but this pack has a very odd setup from most because I would actually say that Tracey and _Draco_ are the Betas, rather than Tracey and Theo. With that in mind, I believe Luna meant that you should ask Harry and Tracey for their opinions because they look at things differently from all of us after all their pranking. They also don’t do things through pure research quite often. Why don’t I go find them and send them here?”

Remus stood and left the library without waiting for a response. Hermione was shaking her head in disbelief, always the one who had the most trouble dealing with Luna and her odd ways of saying things. Justin was leaning back in his chair, the front two legs off the ground, steadying himself against the table with his left foot. Padma and Terry were whispering back and forth.

Natalie looked down at the picture in her Journal, using her wand to remove it from the book before placing it on the table, smiling as the largest cat caught the one that was Graham, making them both roll around in the grass while the cat that was her looked on, amused.

“Remus said you needed us?” Harry asked as he entered the library, Tracey beside them. Natalie looked around her armchair to see them walking towards the table, Harry quickly finding the notes and going to read them. Tracey, on the other hand, looked over Natalie’s shoulder at the drawing.

“Did you draw that?” the Slytherin asked quietly so as not to disturb the others, and Natalie nodded hesitantly, wondering what Tracey would think of the drawing. “It’s really good, Natalie. I didn’t know you could draw.”

“I don’t do it very often, but I was bored and needed something to do,” Natalie admitted just as quietly. “Luna animated it a few minutes ago.”

“Ah, yes, that does seem like something Luna would do, isn’t it?” Tracey replied in amusement. “Well, I’d best see what’s going on.”

Natalie nodded as Tracey moved to stand next to Harry, looking over his shoulder and reading the notes. What followed was the same conversation as had been said many times already, but this time, Harry and Tracey were frowning as they listened. When they had heard everything, the two leaned their heads together and began whispering. Natalie could only hear a very few words here and there.

“Think it would work?... Muggle… might help… Luna’s right… too logically…” Natalie really couldn’t hear anything more. Suddenly, they both looked up at the group sitting around the table.

“You’ve been thinking of only using magic or the Journals,” Harry began. “Why not mix Muggle technology ideas together with magic, almost like the twins have?”

“What do you mean?” Hermione asked.

“Think of the Extendable Ears and how they remind you of headphones, almost,” Tracey explained. “Why not figure out a way to have a single cord that goes into the ear and stays there to work like a Muggle walkie-talkie or phone might. Maybe we could even attach something to the front of a throat so that we can talk to others even while fighting.”

“I think I understand…” Padma began slowly. “But I think a picture would help.”

“Natalie, do you understand what Harry and I are talking about?” Tracey asked her, and Natalie thought about what had been said before nodding hesitantly. “Could you try to draw a picture of it, just a basic one?”

Natalie’s answer was to pick up her pencil and begin drawing a small, circular object that might fit into one’s ear with a cord attached to it that had a very thin circle at the end, almost like a suction cup. When she was done, she used her wand to cut that sheet of parchment out of her Journal and passed it to the others.

“This is excellent, Natalie,” Harry told her. “Not only did you come up with a great idea, but you even drew this on a very vague description. Nice job.” Natalie returned his smile happily, relieved that no one thought her ideas were silly. It was actually a relief to know that the others knew about her ideas and approved of them.

“I think I get what you’re going for,” Terry sighed, “but this is going to take a lot of research. Plus, getting the materials to make this, all without actual Muggle technology… This will take a lot of work.”

“Not as much as you think,” Justin disagreed. “Except for Padma, we all think of things like this as if we’re still Muggles, but with Magic, nothing needs to actually connect these two parts. The cord will be used for the actual spells while the earpiece will send the voices to our ears and this circle will send our voices to others. Of course, finding the magic to make it happen will be hard, but all of this could just be conjured or transfigured from something.”

“We’ll get everyone we can onto this for this last week and then find some of the other sixth and seventh years at school willing to help with this when we get there,” Harry stated. “It’ll be our research project for the HPs this year among everything else we have to do. Yes, it will take a lot of time and effort, but the results will make up for all that. Now, come on, it’s almost time for dinner. We can work on this after we go shopping tomorrow.”

Natalie stood and collected her Journal and pencil and the drawing, leaving her notebook with Hermione, turning to leave the library. Tracey suddenly placed her arm around Natalie’s shoulders, and Natalie looked up at her, surprised.

“You did a good job thinking this up and passing it on to the rest of us,” Tracey told her quietly as they left. “It’s impressive, and I promise you that Harry is just as impressed as the rest of us. You’re going to be a very impressive worker when you’re done at Hogwarts sometime in the future, Natalie; that’s for sure.”

Natalie smiled and headed down to the dining room with Tracey, feeling very pleased.

…

Neville held hands with Hannah as they walked through Diagon Alley, Susan and Justin beside them. Just like last summer, Amelia had specified a single day of the summer where there would be increased Auror security, and all parents had been informed of it. The Order and Dumbledore had been ordered to stay away except for Tonks and Kingsley, and Harry was now happily talking to Ginny in Parseltongue just ahead of him, a few hisses just barely audible over the noises of the alley.

The atmosphere of Diagon Alley was lighter than most would expect in the middle of a war, but Neville had a feeling it was due to the extra protection and the large crowds of students. At least three-fourths of the school was here, including most of the first years, who were being helped along by older students when it became obvious they were highly confused by it all. Laughter rang throughout the area, young children racing around with older siblings and parents trying to catch them before they could cause trouble.

Neville shook his head and chuckled as a pair of twins, who looked to be about the age of six, raced by, almost crashing into him. Hannah squeezed his hand a little bit tighter, and he looked at her, a small smile on his face.

“It’s precious, seeing them so happy, isn’t it?” she asked, and Neville could only nod in agreement as they walked into Flourish and Blotts to begin searching for their books.

Some, like him and the Hufflepuffs and Ron and Theo and Blaise and even Draco, were quick at getting their books, but the rest took longer, searching deeply in the stacks for spare books that might help them with their newest project that had been announced at the dinner table the night before or just for more spells or information for essays. Eventually, however, they got to leave the bookstore, and Neville sighed in relief that they had managed to finish there in less than an hour this time.

From there, they headed to the Apothecary, where Neville and most of the group hung around while those actually taking Potions loaded up on ingredients, Harry getting the most of them all. Then, it was time to get fresh ink and parchment and quills and anything else they felt they might need for homework and notes and classes in general. After a quick stop for owl treats and some rats for Ankh, Harry’s snake, it was time to get fresh robes for those who had outgrown their old ones. Then, of course, they had to go to Quality Quidditch Supplies.

The final stop before finding some lunch was the twins’ shop, where everyone spread out and found supplies. Even Neville, one of the few who didn’t really prank at all except in the prank wars, picked up a large batch of supplies from the twins, knowing they would be an advantage during training and especially if there was a battle.

Neville caught sight of Harry pulling the twins into a corner and whispering in their ears. The redheads looked shocked by whatever he was telling them, but they nodded after a bit, accepting the money pouch from Harry for the first time since he had given them his Triwizard winnings three years before, which Harry had told the group about at Marauder Manor one time. That was what told Neville this was a big deal and that he would most certainly learn of it sometime in the future. Nothing Harry did that was big stayed quiet forever, always shocking those who knew him but hadn’t been let in on the plan until it was time to fulfill it.

Finally, though, the group went to lunch, where he sat with Hannah and Justin and Susan and enjoyed his meal and the chance to be with his girlfriend and other friends out and about, away from the Manor yet again. It was nice to be given freedom once in a while.

…

The final week of summer had passed by quickly, filled with research for their newest project, training, and making sure they had everything for the year. Harry had argued with Hermione over how the meeting on the Hogwarts Express would happen, and in the end, she agreed to letting the Prefects vote before allowing Harry to take over if the vote went the way he knew it would.

It had come as no surprise to those in Marauder Manor when Hermione and Harry received the Head Girl and Boy badges with their letters, just as Astoria’s Prefect badge had been expected due to her status as a leader. In fact, the larger surprise would have been if they hadn’t been given the badges.

Sirius and Remus had told Harry that his parents would have truly been proud of him for earning that badge, despite Sirius’ claim that it was un-Marauder-like until Remus hit him over the head and reminded the Animagus that Remus had been a Prefect and James Head Boy, making Sirius pout but quiet down. Harry could only laugh at the sight.

Now, it was the 31st of August, and everyone had packed basically everything they would need. Harry was sitting in the living room, watching with many others as Remus spoke to Tonks, trying to reassure her that his job wouldn’t keep him from her.

“Dumbledore promised me that I could spend my nights with you, and either Saturday or Sunday I’ll be here, depending on the weekend. I’ll also be spending the full moon here rather than at Hogwarts so that I can’t accidentally harm anyone, since we’re all used to those nights here,” Remus promised, and Tonks calmed somewhat.

“And when our baby is born?” she questioned.

“The Headmaster promised I could leave immediately and have a week of leave with the other professors covering for me before I have to return,” Remus told her. “After that, I’ll be permitted the entire weekend with you here at the Manor.”

Tonks just sighed and nodded, hugging Remus. Harry had to stifle a snicker at the relief on Remus’ face, hearing many coughs and snorts from the teenagers in the room. Remus glared at them for a moment before giving it up.

Harry just relaxed into the couch after that, knowing that everything he could possibly need was packed away in his trunk and ready to go.

It was almost time to begin his final year at Hogwarts, also the most likely year for Voldemort to attack the castle. This year was most certainly going to be an interesting one.


	32. Chapter Thirty-Two

Harry sat down by the window in the enlarged compartment of the Hogwarts Express that was set aside for the Prefects. He had been forced by Hermione to come to Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters dressed in his full uniform, complete with Slytherin robes and Head Boy badge pinned to his chest. She had said it was to make a good impression, but Harry felt that it was torture to be dressed like this before they even left the Manor. Fortunately, Hermione also forced everyone else to do it, knowing he wouldn’t have done it any other way, but it was still annoying.

Hermione was standing outside the compartment, keeping first years out and making sure the other Prefects actually came to the meeting, which allowed Harry to pull out the various sheets of large, white Muggle paper from one of his pouches, unfolding them until he could glance at the black ink on them. Once he was certain they were what he wanted, Harry folded the pages over once to hide what was on them from the Prefects, leaving them on his lap as he looked down at the platform.

It was hard to believe that it had already been six years since the first time he had done this, hiding in the corner of his compartment while some older Ravenclaws chatted away the whole train ride. That was the honest truth, however, and now he was seeing a slightly different platform out his window.

One of the first things that caught his attention was seeing fewer parents around but more Aurors. Many of the students were coming with friends, and of course, there was the large group that had dispersed quickly from Grimmauld Place, having arrived via Portkey. Harry and those from Marauder Manor had been sure to hug their family, most not by blood, to be sure they knew they loved them; after Samuel and Daniella, it was more obvious that they could lose those they loved while at Hogwarts.

Harry could still see robes of various colors and shades as well as Muggle clothing, but the people wearing them had a different air about them. Six years ago, they had been chatting away, laughing, and in tears about seeing their children off. Now, with the war going on, most were tense and speaking in whispers, and not even the children could laugh as they said goodbye to their families before boarding the train to Hogwarts.

The saddest sight for Harry, despite it making him proud, had to be the weapons he could see hidden on the teenagers. Wands were on holsters worn either on an arm or leg or even hanging off a belt, and knives and daggers were slight bulges in clothes. Yes, it was a good idea to always have those things on them, especially when Death Eaters could attack at any moment, but it always saddened Harry to see those just twelve years old with weapons and a determined air about them, many with sadness and despair in their eyes and bodies. The war was taking its toll, and a place like this made it quite obvious.

Still, as eleven o’clock came and the train’s whistle blew, parents called out goodbyes before disappearing, either by magic or back through the portal. Harry waved at Sirius and Tonks and Daniel and Samantha before the train began to move and they disappeared.

Once the train had left, it didn’t take long for the Prefects to arrive, the compartment door closing with a _snap_ as Hermione stepped inside and took her seat across from Harry. They had made an agreement, and she was going to keep it. Hermione waved in Harry’s direction, letting him know it was time to begin, and Harry stood, placing his papers where he had been sitting.

“I don’t think any introductions are necessary, do you?” Harry asked with a grin as he looked around the compartment, drawing amused snorts and laughs from the Prefects. “Didn’t think so. Well, as my _lovely_ friends have been saying for years,” Harry shot glares at Ginny, Astoria, Maya, Daphne, Terry, Padma, Neville, Susan, and Justin, “I am, indeed, Head Boy this year, so you lot are actually looking at the correct person for once.” Some of the sixth year Prefects looked ashamed, but Harry’s friends just laughed at his annoyed look.

“Now, Hermione here is Head Girl this year,” Harry continued when the snickers died down. “We’ve come to an agreement that I’m allowed to ask you a question, and how we run this meeting depends on the question. Unfortunately for our new fifth year Prefects, the question is only for the sixth and seventh years because they’ve been Prefects before this year.” The fifth years nodded in understanding and didn’t complain.

“So, to our sixth and seventh years, I just have one thing to ask,” Harry stated. “Did the way the Prefect meetings were run in the past bore you to death?” There was a moment of silence as the Prefects absorbed his question, and then Harry received an emphatic “YES!” in response. Harry glanced at Hermione, but she raised an eyebrow in his direction, obviously not accepting that as good enough for her, so he sighed and turned back to the group.

“If I offered you the choice between a meeting like last year’s or a new sort of meeting, which would you choose?” Harry questioned, looking around at the group.

“New, please, Harry!” Bradley Martin of Ravenclaw, a sixth year, begged. “I’m a Ravenclaw, and I don’t think I could _stand_ another meeting like that for a second year in a row!” Around him, others were agreeing quickly, none of them wanting to sit through yet another boring meeting.

“Well, Hermione?” Harry asked, turning to face his friend, and the Gryffindor sighed, putting the papers in her hands beside her and nodding in his direction. Harry clapped his hands together happily, smiling, as he turned back to the other. “Well then, I believe I’m going to be leading this meeting for the most part rather than Hermione. Understand that _she’s_ in charge of all schedules, so you lot will go to her for that information, but I’m the one you go to when you need to report any problems and punishments, got it?” There were nods all around the compartment as it wasn’t that hard to remember.

“Great!” Harry decided. “Now, onto the fun part of the meeting.” Harry pulled out his wand and conjured a table in the middle of the compartment, summoning his papers to him and unfolding them before placing them on the table.

“If you look at the papers before you, we’ve got maps of each floor of Hogwarts,” Harry told the Prefects, and even Hermione was looking forward, interested. “For the next half-hour, I want each of you to use one of these pens and mark off any places near your area of the maps where you know students go if they’re out after curfew or doing something they shouldn’t be — HP stuff not included.”

Harry banished pens lightly to each Prefect, each one a different color, and then sat back and watched as they all began making X’s on various spots around the castle. It didn’t take long before most of the major areas used such as out-of-the-way broom cupboards, the Astronomy Tower, seldom-used secret passages, password-protected rooms, the kitchens, and unused classrooms were all marked off. After those places came areas that showed who had explored the castle quite a bit and who hadn’t.

Ginny purposely sat back and watched those around her after ticking off the obvious places on the fourth floor, and Harry knew it was because she wanted to let those around her have a chance before she went and showed them the best places. Astoria was doing something similar in the dungeons as she was surrounded by Ravenclaws and Gryffindors, who were rarely in the dungeons except for Potions while all Slytherins knew those corridors like the back of their hands after first year.

The Ravenclaws had marked up many hidden areas in the library that not even Harry knew about, drawing them into the map, and he made a mental note to add those to the map he, Tracey, and Ginny kept in his trunk as a Master Map. He and Tracey would be adding to their Maps in the future…

Everyone was whispering back and forth, some arguing about where a specific place actually was, only to have someone else mark it off before they could figure it out. It was obvious that, despite the seriousness of their task, they were all having fun while learning more about the school than they had already known. Even Hermione was marking off a few places and studying the map, and Harry knew she had figured out why he was doing this.

Eventually, everyone sat back, even Ginny, pleased with what they had managed to do, and Harry carefully looked it over. While there were a few places he spotted that hadn’t been marked, and many he hadn’t even known about before now, they had done a really good job with this.

“Well, well, except for these few places” — Harry used his own pen to mark them off as he spoke — “you lot did a really good job here. Now, I’m going to use this to make miniature maps for you by tomorrow morning. When you patrol, now you’ll know _exactly_ where to search to make sure no one is out of bounds or doing something they shouldn’t be doing.” A few of the Prefects looked surprised, obviously just realizing why Harry had made them do the activity, but they weren’t really upset; it had been fun.

“I’m pretty sure even our fifth years know what a Prefect is supposed to do,” Harry continued. “During the day, if someone is doing something they shouldn’t be, you tell them off, write the infraction down, and report it. Usually Professor McGonagall takes off points when the Head Boy or Girl turns in the week’s reports, but if it’s the first time it’s happened and it’s not a big deal, she might just see it as a warning and let it go. However, if you catch something _big_ , immediately report it to Hermione, me, or one of the professors so that it can be dealt with.

“In the evenings, we have patrols that are done in pairs with four Prefects out each evening. You’ll use the maps I give everyone to make sure you check all the places you need to, and if you catch anyone, you take them straight to the nearest professor to make sure they get points taken and possibly even detention.”

Harry looked around the compartment and saw many of the Prefects looking worried, and he could understand why. No one wanted to turn in their fellow students, especially if the person was a friend.

“Look,” he began softly, his sympathy for the Prefects flowing into his voice, “I understand most of you don’t want to turn in your friends for being out at night — none of us do — but we were given these badges for a reason. The way I see it is that, by turning our friends in once or twice, we curb their habit of breaking the rules and save them from getting worse punishments later on. Well, that and we teach them to sneak around the castle better so that they don’t get caught as often,” Harry added as an afterthought at the end, and everyone began to laugh, even Hermione.

“Seriously, though, if your friends give you problems for getting them in trouble, send them to me, and we’ll see how they treat you for doing your job after that,” Harry stated with a serious look on his face, earning grateful nods.

“So, unless Hermione has anything to add, I believe we’re done here, and she can tell us the schedule for the patrols we’ll be doing of the train today,” Harry finished, clasping his hands together, sitting back down, and looking at Hermione like he would a professor, all just to ease the tension even more in the compartment by drawing the laughs he did.

Smiling and shaking her head, Hermione stood. “Thanks for the wonderful meeting, Harry. Much quicker than normal, yet you covered everything we needed to. I know it will be hard to believe, but I hope this is a tradition that continues on from here on out. In any case, the schedule for patrols today is…”

…

“Well, that was certainly faster than usual,” Theo commented as the Prefects with colored Journals, except for Astoria who was on patrol, entered their usual compartment and settled down in the empty seats.

“I’m going to guess that Harry won the argument and got to lead the meeting,” Draco added in amusement. Hermione glared at him before looking away with a huff, pulling out _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 7_ to read as a way to ignore him. “That’s a yes,” Draco concluded as everyone laughed at them.

“Harry actually made a Prefect meeting interesting,” Maya declared to those who hadn’t been there. “Had us —”

“Do things that I told you not to pass around the school, thank you very much,” Harry interrupted, reminding his Prefect friends of his request just before they left the compartment not to tell anyone else about the Prefect meeting. If this was what was happening with these Prefects, he had a feeling the meeting wouldn’t be kept secret for very long.

“Oh, right, sorry Harry,” Maya told him sheepishly.

“Aw, I wanted to know what Harry did!” Theo groaned, banging his fist on the small spot on the seat between him and Blaise, who moved his hand away quickly.

“Watch it!” Blaise growled at Theo, making sure to keep his hands in his lap after that.

“Sorry,” Theo told Blaise, “but we’ve been hearing Harry and Hermione argue for _days_ , and now we don’t even get to hear what it was about? Not fair.”

“Life’s not fair,” Daphne told Theo smugly, smirking in his direction. Harry just rolled his eyes at the reactions of his friends but said nothing about it.

“So, Hermione, when do we go on patrol again?” Harry asked, just to shut up this conversation.

“Your patrol is in about half an hour, and mine is in a couple,” she replied without even looking at the sheet. She had been looking at it so much that she had already memorized it. Harry had to fight the urge to shake his head at that.

“Well, then, let’s get a game or something going before we all die of boredom,” Harry said, wondering what game they could all play easily enough. He didn’t even have to do anything more than suggest playing games, however, before two decks of cards were pulled out along with two tables. Money bags were pulled from various places, and poker games were begun, making it easy for the Prefects to fold and take their money with them before being dealt back in when they were done with their patrols. Not really a bad game with the situation.

…

Maya rolled her eyes as she and Brandon made their way down the corridor of the Hogwarts Express. Yes, she could understand wanting to practice new jinxes and hexes one had read over the summer, but couldn’t they _at least_ get an older student in their compartment just in case? She and her boyfriend had just told off their fourth compartment for practicing spells they had never used before without someone who knew and could use the counters for them. It was really beginning to get on her nerves.

“Calm down, Maya,” Brandon told her, placing his hand on her shoulder. “If it’s really annoying you, talk to Harry and have him lecture everyone about it when the HPs start meeting again. Don’t take it out on them now, though.”

Taking a deep breath, Maya calmed herself and realized Brandon was right. She flashed him a smile before walking further down the corridor, knowing that the rest of their patrol would be long, but at least it would finally be done soon enough.

…

Harry knew his silence was bothering his friends, but he just had nothing to say as they entered the castle and made their way into the Great Hall and to the Slytherin table. Around him, fifth, sixth, and seventh years were falling silent before speaking very quickly, all talking about the sight of one Remus Lupin at the Head Table again.

Students were trickling in slowly as Filch probed them all with his annoying security probe, just as he had the year before, and the Great Hall would soon be filled as it was supposed to be.

“Something wrong?” Tracey asked him quietly, and Harry glanced over at her, meeting her eyes, before shaking his head. “Ah…” she muttered in understanding before turning to the others. “He’s fine. There’s just nothing to talk about, so why bother talking?”

“Worried us for nothing,” Draco grumbled quietly, but Harry could see the relief in his body. It took Harry a moment to realize his friends had been worried because his lack of noise was reminding them of February when he and Tracey had rarely said a word.

“I’m fine, just thinking,” Harry told them, and he wasn’t lying. Ever since his final patrol had ended, he had sat in the compartment and just thought about what this school year would most likely bring. Not only was it his final year at Hogwarts, but he just had a feeling that the war would finally be coming to him in a way that it hadn’t yet done.

“Not again,” Theo groaned dramatically, allowing his head to fall to the table with a light crash, making some of the silverware, goblets, and plates jump slightly. Everyone around them laughed, even Harry, while Tracey rolled her eyes with an amused smile on her face.

“Yes, Theo, _again_ ,” Harry stated mockingly, grinning as Theo just groaned loudly and banged his head onto the table again.

Before anyone could say anything more, however, the doors opened, and Professor McGonagall led the new first years into the Hall. Harry recognized Terry’s two siblings, Tammy and Michael, as well as a few others who had stayed at Grimmauld Place that summer. They came to a stop in front of the Sorting Hat, and everyone fell silent as they waited for its song. The Hat opened its mouth wide and began to sing.

_“This is it,_  
_The time has arrived,_  
 _For the battle to be at our home_  
 _As the darkness has survived._  
 _Soon the dark shall be at our doorsteps,_  
 _And that is when we must fight,_  
 _Because you are all smart_  
 _And will do what is most certainly right._  
 _Unfortunately, the time to warn you has passed;_  
 _It will not help to be told to take care_  
 _As no matter what I say,_  
 _You will all do as you dare._  
 _What I can say is to stay united_  
 _So that the dark does not win;_  
 _Being apart will only help them_  
 _And destroy us from within._  
 _Continue to train for the fight_  
 _As it will keep most of you alive;_  
 _Your lives will be able to be yours_  
 _As long as you survive._  
 _And to the Chosen Heir I say:_  
 _Oh Chosen Heir, the time is near;_  
 _The end is coming,_  
 _And the secret will be out within the year._  
 _Use the time you have left,_  
 _Keep the secret close and prepare;_  
 _That which was there to help you in the beginning_  
 _Will help you if you are aware._  
 _It is now time to speak of the four Houses,_  
 _Which will work together to end this war,_  
 _For together they are fierce,_  
 _While apart they are poor._  
 _The brave Gryffindors shall lead the attack,_  
 _For they will do anything but run into the night;_  
 _The Ravenclaws will help plan the attacks,_  
 _And their minds will help during the fight;_  
 _The hard-working Hufflepuffs will stay true to you,_  
 _As they will stay no matter what;_  
 _The sly Slytherins will lead them all,_  
 _With their brains that will seal the lot._  
 _Not all shall fight,_  
 _But all of you shall find_  
 _Yourselves in the Houses,_  
 _After I see into your mind_.”

Around the Hall, a slow, hesitant applause began, all worried by the words the Hat had sung. The war would be at Hogwarts within the year? They would all have to be part of a battle sometime in the near future? It wasn’t something any of the students really wanted to think about.

Harry, however, had other things to worry about. He was trying to understand the Hat’s message to him. The first part made sense, even if it actually worried him to know that his secret of being Salazar Slytherin’s Chosen Heir would finally be out after all these years. However, thinking about the second part, Harry was lost. What beginning, and what had been there that could possibly help? Harry really had no idea what the Hat meant, so he pushed the thoughts aside to pay attention to at least some of the Sorting.

“Boot, Michael!”

Terry’s younger brother left his sister behind with a small, sad, worried smile, sitting down on the stool and placing the Sorting Hat on his head. Michael sat there for all of half a minute before the Hat called out, “RAVENCLAW!”

As Michael made his way to the cheering table of blue, Harry saw Tammy cheering her twin on while Terry clapped his younger brother on the back when he sat down next to him. Danielle smiled down the Ravenclaw table at him as well.

“Boot, Tammy!”

The Ravenclaws quieted as Tammy made her way to the stool and placed the Hat on her head. This time the Hat took over two minutes to decide, and Harry could tell most of the Hall was quite surprised when it called out, “HUFFLEPUFF!” but Terry and Michael both stood and cheered on her, spurring the normal applause from the Hufflepuffs for their newest member. Tammy smiled gently at her brothers before taking her seat, turning slightly to smile at her cousin, Danielle, further down the table.

None of the other first years really caught Harry’s attention until the name, “Turpin, Brian!” was called. Lisa Turpin was a Ravenclaw in Harry’s year, and he hadn’t realized she also had a younger brother coming this year, so he looked on as the boy sat for around a minute with the Hat. Of course, Harry was pretty sure no one had expected the younger brother of a Ravenclaw to have the Hat call out, “SLYTHERIN!” for him, but Harry cheered for him anyway, leading the rest of his House. Harry was certain he saw Brian give Lisa a hesitant look that she gave a smile and a small head nod towards the Slytherin table in reply.

Harry only tuned out for a few minutes before another name caught his attention: “Wood, Amanda!” Blinking, Harry looked to see a young girl that had some resemblance to the Gryffindor Quidditch captain who had been there for his first three years at Hogwarts sit down on the stool, almost immediately being declared “GRYFFINDOR!” when the Hat touched her head.

As Amanda was the final first year to be Sorted, Professor McGonagall took the Hat and stool away while Professor Dumbledore began the feast. Harry easily grabbed some of the roast and potatoes before Theo beat him to it and took all the good pieces. After that, the main sounds around them were the clinking of silverware hitting plates, goblets thumping as they were set back down onto the wooden tables, and chatter from others.

Suddenly, Harry’s Journal burned against his chest, and he groaned but pulled it out to see Hermione was calling him. Looking around, he saw he wasn’t the only person getting the message and opened the colored Journal section of his Journal.

_Neville: What is it, Hermione?_

_Theo: Yeah, some of us are still eating!_

_Hermione: I’m sorry, but I wanted to know your thoughts on the Chosen Heir. I mean, it’s obvious now that he or she is a seventh year, what with the Hat basically giving it away._

_Hannah: How did it do that?_

_Padma: In second year, the Hat said that the Heir had already been chosen, and now we know this year that he’s still at Hogwarts._

_Maya: Yes, that’s true, he’s most likely in your year, but why do you care so much?_

_Draco: *Rolls eyes* Because it’s a mystery, so Hermione really wants to know._

_Natalie: Draco, be nice! It’s got so much that’s unknown about it. Think. What sort of Chosen Heir is he? How did he become the Chosen Heir — how was he chosen? Why don’t we know who he is already with all we know about the school and the students? There’s so much that could be answered if we just knew who the Chosen Heir was…_

_Graham: Hermione, what have you done with Natalie? She’s never like this!_

_Natalie: Oh be quiet, Graham! You know how I get when there’s a mystery to be solved._

_Graham: Well, yeah, I do, but that doesn’t mean I can’t blame Hermione!_

_Justin: Enough, you two. Hermione, I think we should just leave the Chosen Heir thing alone. I mean, the Hat did just tell us the secret would be out by the end of the year._

_Hermione: But — but… *Sighs* Oh, fine, I’ll leave it alone, for now…_

Harry silently sighed in relief, glad that that topic was done. He, Tracey, and Ginny had said nothing during the conversation because it was always easier if someone else could head the others off. They were the only three alive who knew of Harry’s status as the Heir and his ownership of Slytherin’s Dagger, and he wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible.

Not long after that conversation, the Headmaster stood and spoke to the school. Of course, he mentioned the war yet again and warned them to be cautious. When it was announced that Professor Snape had returned back to his old position as Potions Master, Harry could have sworn he saw his Head of House smile slightly at the hesitant clapping, the students unsure if this was a good thing or not depending on the professor’s view of it. The moment it was declared that Professor Lupin had taken over the position of Defense Professor again, the eldest three years of Hogwarts all gave him a standing ovation while the rest of the students cheered happily, having heard only good things about the man. Harry most certainly _did_ see Remus smiling and wiping away a tear of happiness.

After that, they were set free to head to their dorms, and Harry and Daphne quickly walked out so that they would be available in the Common Room for anyone who needed them as the seventh year Prefects — well, Prefect and Head Boy.

Finally, though, Harry was given the freedom to go to bed, and he fell asleep the moment he had changed and collapsed beneath his blankets.


	33. Chapter Thirty-Three

“Anyone else annoyed that we have to wait until Thursday to have Remus again?” Harry questioned as he looked down at his schedule.  _If only it was Monday rather than Tuesday,_ Harry thought with a sigh,  _then we would have had Remus first thing today._

The response from Harry’s fellow seventh years was very positive, telling him that he wasn’t the only one disgruntled that they would have to wait until the final class of Thursday to get to have their favorite Defense professor again.

“I’m willing to bet Remus is very relieved he doesn’t have you lot for a few days,” Maya commented with a laugh. Harry glanced at her schedule to see she had Defense the next day. “Once he has the seventh years in his class, it’s going to be chaos if he has a practical lesson.”

“Shut it,” Theo grumbled for them all. Harry knew that he and his classmates couldn’t argue with the sixth year Slytherin because it was true — the moment a practical lesson took place, Remus would completely lose control of the room as they all proved they were well beyond NEWT level in Defense.

“Wonder how he’s going to keep any of us busy in his class, since he’s the only professor who actually knows how far ahead we are,” Tracey commented lightly.

“No idea, but I have a feeling we’re going to be finding out, and I’m not sure how much we’re going to like it,” Harry sighed, putting his schedule away and finishing his orange juice before standing. “Well, I’ve got a free period right now, since it’s Herbology, so I’m going to go make sure the Den is still in one piece after the summer. Anyone coming?”

A few of his friends quickly finished their meals to join him, and they all left the Hall to enjoy a double free period, the first due to Herbology and the second due to a break.

…

“What’s the plan for the HPs this year?” Bradley Martin, Ravenclaw’s sixth year leader, asked as he sat across from Harry in the Den during the second part of the Slytherin’s free period that morning.

“Well, we’ve already decided that the testing will begin on Friday, like it did last year, and we’ll continue on through the weekend,” Harry informed him, knowing others were listening around them and that it would be passed throughout the school shortly. “After that, we’ll just continue like we did last year with specialized lessons and strategy meetings. Of course, this year, with the Hat’s warnings, we’re going to be doing quite a bit of planning to prepare ourselves in case of an attack, so expect a lot more trainings to be like those games we played at the end of last year.

“Otherwise, a lot of what we’ll do beyond mock-invasions and the normal training sessions from last year will be strategy and preparations, so don’t be surprised if we ask people to do research or help make things for traps and such. The twins will obviously help, but we’re going to need come up with ideas of our own. We can’t go to them for everything.”

Bradley nodded seriously in understanding, his brow slightly furrowed. “I’ll pass that around,” he promised, “and I’ll make sure the other leaders know that helping the first years get ready for their Journals is a necessity so that we can train them as much as possible before an attack of some sort.”

“Thank you,” Harry replied. “That would help quite a bit.”

Bradley smiled sadly and stood up, heading to another part of the room, leaving Harry and his friends to go back to their reading as they relaxed before Transfiguration and then Potions, for some.

…

The first two and a half days of term passed without any real incident. Students didn’t ask any of the leaders of the Hogwarts Protectors about what they would be doing that year once word got around about what Harry had told Bradley, which only took until the middle of afternoon lessons of that very day.

Now, however, Harry was walking into his first Defense class of the year, and he really didn’t have any idea of what to expect from Remus this time. Back in his third year, he would have said Remus would be giving them a lecture on another “dark” creature and how to get away from it, perhaps even showing them the creature. This year, it was obviously going to be a very different sort of lesson.

When Harry entered the classroom, he shifted his bag on his shoulder slightly and looked around cautiously. He had come alone today due to needing the loo right near the end of another free period, and he was now on guard as he looked around the completely bare room.

With an almost silent hiss, Harry’s wand shot into his left hand, and he had already done a spell that told him Remus was in the room, but Harry wasn’t sure what his father’s friend was up to with this. Remus would have known that Harry would have figured out what was going on, so why…

Harry’s eyes widened for a moment, and then he cast a spell on the one blackboard in the room, smirking as he saw the instructions had been hidden by magic. Replacing the spell covering the words, Harry reached into one of his pouches and pulled out his Invisibility Cloak. Before pulling the Cloak on, however, Harry made sure to cast other spells that would hide him such as a Silencing Charm, one that masked his scent, another charm that masked his magical signature, and finally the Disillusionment Charm. Once that was done, he added the Cloak as a final layer, slipping into a different corner of the classroom from Remus. Then, he leaned against the wall to wait and watch the show.

If Harry was being honest, this was quite a good test Remus had devised for the seventh years. It would show where they were at in not only using Charms during a fight to hide but it also would show their ability to think on their feet and figure out something that was obviously a trap of some sort. Most probably wouldn’t think of checking the board for instructions, and many might not even know a spell to see if there were people in the room. Of course, Harry knew that his whole class could use the same spells he had used to hide himself, except for the Cloak obviously, but if they would even realize they needed to do so was the test, not really their ability to hide.

The first person to enter the classroom was Draco, which was understandable since he had a free period as well and the last class hadn’t even finished yet. He was frowning as he looked around the room, as if he felt something was off just as Harry had. Unlike Harry, however, Draco used a charm to check the room for magic, meaning he only found Remus and the charm on the board due to the spell Harry had used to hide his magic. Nodding slightly, Draco pointed his wand at the board and canceled the spell on it, reading the words there. From there, Draco copied Harry spell-for-spell before hiding in a third corner of the room.

Daphne followed Draco, using the same spell that Harry had so that she realized there were three people in the classroom. After her came Neville and Hannah, who worked together to find the people and message before hiding by Remus. By that point, the bell signaling the end of class rang, meaning the rest of the class would be joining them shortly.

Harry saw something flash out of the corner of his eye, and he turned, waving his wand silently, to see that Remus had added a second charm to the blackboard so that, when someone uncovered the message, only that person would be able to see it. A smart move, as he must have known some would arrive before the last class ended, so he had left that charm off, but now there would be multiple people coming in at once in groups, so he had to make sure it stayed hidden to prove who would and wouldn’t pass his pop quiz.

Tracey led Theo and Blaise into the room, coming from Arithmancy, and Harry could see she instantly suspected something, most likely due to knowing that Harry and a few others hadn’t had class during the last period, so they should already be here.

“Actually, I need the loo, so I’ll be right back,” Tracey told the two boys, and they waved her off. She got as far as the door before she waved her wand to make herself invisible, hiding herself with other spells, most likely. Harry noted the first charm had come off the board, and he knew Tracey had seen the note when the spell was replaced.

“Harry, I know you’re here,” Tracey’s voice suddenly whispered from right next to him, and he reached out to grab her arm, letting her know where he was. With a wave of his wand, Harry raised a Privacy Charm so that Blaise and Theo wouldn’t be able to hear them.

“It’s safe to talk,” he told Tracey quietly, just to be cautious.

“Remus’ idea is a smart one, isn’t it?” she questioned, and Harry didn’t even have to see her to know she was grinning.

“Yeah, it is,” Harry agreed. “Wonder how long it’ll take Theo and Blaise to figure it out.”

“Not long,” Tracey muttered. “They’re getting curious by the lack of people in here like I did. What I’m wondering is how, when this room is more full, people will get away with hiding without the others noticing. It’s easier when there are fewer people in the room.”

“Not that hard,” Harry reminded her. “All it takes is a good excuse to leave the room or just sneaking into a corner and using a charm so that people don’t notice them. It’s how long it’ll take people to figure those ways out that I want to see.”

“Ah, true,” Tracey admitted, and Harry heard her hair moving as she nodded.

After that, they both fell silent as both Theo and Blaise suddenly began waving their wands and figuring out the test, quickly hiding just as more of their class entered. After that, the classroom was full of controlled chaos as the Ravenclaws and Hermione and Justin and Susan quickly figured out the truth and found ways to hide without it looking out of place. Ron Weasley also managed to turn himself invisible, using the fact that Dean and Seamus were busy arguing over football again and no one else was watching him to his advantage.

Parvati Patil, Padma’s sister, suddenly figured it out and told Lavender Brown that she needed to use the loo. When Lavender made to follow, Parvati mentioned that she was hoping to ask Hermione something, adding that she had heard their fellow Gryffindor had gone to the loo. Lavender stopped after that and let Parvati leave the room, not realizing that her friend had entered it again not fifteen seconds later, hidden beneath spells.

A few of the Hufflepuffs also figured it out shortly after, but Zacharias Smith, Ernie Macmillan, Lavender, Dean, and Seamus were eventually left alone in the room, looking about in confusion and a bit of worry, having finally realized something very odd was going on.

“Well, for those of you around the edges of the classroom, you passed this test,” Professor Lupin said as he finally removed his spells and stepped out into the middle of the room. “You five didn’t do as well, but this wasn’t for an actual grade, so it’s fine. I was just testing you to see where you were at. You lot hiding, time to come out now.”

Harry pulled his Cloak off before removing his charms, everyone else coming out of hiding around the room with him. Once the whole class was visible, Professor Lupin removed the charm from the blackboard to reveal his instructions to everyone.

_Once you see this message, hide somewhere around the edges of the room in any way you wish. Unless you figured this out with someone already, do not tell anyone else or you will fail this test. Make sure no one else sees you disappear. Hide this message again once you’ve read it._

“Now, our actual classroom is next door,” Professor Lupin told the class. “This will be where we do our practical lessons while the other classroom is for lectures and bookwork. Today, we’ll be staying in here. I’m going to be showing you any and all concealment charms I know as well as how to sense others in a room or building. Let’s get started!” Professor Lupin clapped his hands together and began directing people to various places around the classroom with a smile.

Harry had to admit, for a first class in a room full of seventh years well beyond NEWT level in many ways, Remus was doing well.

…

“This is always the most annoying part,” Draco sighed, “even if it _is_ fun as well.”

Draco was sitting in his usual seat around the long table they usually used while planning for HP meetings in the Room of Requirement. It was Friday afternoon, and soon enough, they would be testing their students to see how well they had kept up with their training over the summer. Of course, they already knew many had kept up well and were beyond where they had been at the end of last term due to staying at Grimmauld Place for a while, but the other students were unknowns in this case.

Yes, it was fun to get to test them and duel with them, but it was a pain because they had to keep track of how everyone in a single group was doing. In the end, they always had discussions of who was where, putting everyone in various levels on a chart just to keep an eye on how they were all doing. Throughout the year, those levels got higher and the numbers changed almost constantly, but they still kept it for the times when the teams they made were created specifically by level.

“Yeah, well, we need to test them anyway, Draco,” Harry sighed, and Draco couldn’t argue that; he just wished there was another way to do it. “Believe me, I wish there was another way we could test them, but it’s easier to do it by year and just figure out where each person is.”

“Some are going to be a lot further ahead of those in their year, you know,” Hermione reminded them, and Draco was fighting the urge to roll his eyes. Sometimes, Hermione had to make sure all the facts were said, even the obvious ones that didn’t need saying. It wasn’t always a bad thing, but at times like these, Draco could understand why Hermione had had trouble making friends with the rest of their year way back when they first arrived at Hogwarts.

“We _know_ that, Hermione,” Draco groaned. “It’s why we’re doing this at all, remember?”

“Be nice,” Astoria told him while poking him in the arm, her eyes narrowed. Draco huffed in annoyance but sat back, his arms crossed.

“Sorry, Hermione,” he said to the Gryffindor girl, who waved it off easily with a shrug.

“Should we just do the maze for everyone this time?” Maya wondered aloud. “It wouldn’t be new, but it would be full of surprises.”

“No, I think we should have them in battles in various environments to see how they fight against some of us,” Terry suggested.

“What sort of environments?” Graham asked curiously.

“Forests, beaches, deserts, wheat fields, mountains, towns, cities, anywhere without castles,” Padma instantly began, and Draco realized she and Terry had already been talking about this as Terry didn’t look startled.

“Now that…” Ginny began, and Draco saw a smirk begin to form on her face, slowly turning into the look no one liked to see on the face of any of the three main pranksters — Ginny, Tracey, and Harry. “That is a _very_ good idea,” Ginny finished. She glanced at Harry, and Draco looked to see that he and Tracey both also shared that look. Draco was ever so happy that it wasn’t aimed at _him_ , and he feared for the other students.

This was going to be some intense testing.

…

Ron watched as the other seventh years shared shocked looks at entering what appeared to be the Forbidden Forest as they went through the doorway labeled Testing Room in the Room of Requirement. The redhead managed to keep his shock hidden, but it was a very close call. They had never been trained in a place like this before, only on open fields or in villages such as Hogsmeade or on streets like Diagon Alley or in Hogwarts itself.

Then it hit Ron why they were doing this, and he knew he had to act quickly, before the test began.

“Silence,” he growled, and all of the whispers that had begun to pick up fell away as the small group, at least compared to the other years, of almost twenty seventh years faced him. “Stay silent unless I point at you,” Ron continued as quietly as he could but still audible to the entire group.

“They’re in here, watching us and getting ready to attack us,” he told his classmates. “Now, tell me, one at a time, how would you deal with the fact that we’re about to be hunted down?”

Anthony Goldstein raised his hand, and Ron pointed at him. “I’d use the concealment charms that Professor Lupin has been teaching us so that we’re that much harder to find.”

“Good,” Ron commended with a nod in Anthony’s direction. Wayne Hopkins of Hufflepuff then raised his hand. “Wayne?”

“I’d put Privacy Charms around us right now so they can’t hear us plan.” Ron blinked and quickly waved his wand, others doing the same until they had covered their entire group in Privacy Charms so they couldn’t be heard. “Then I’d have a few of us watch the trees around us while they listen to the plans, in case they attack.”

Ron nodded in agreement and gestured for Dean, Ernie, Parvati, Megan Jones, Morag McDougal, and Kevin Entwhistle to turn and keep watch in a circle around them, all watching different directions.

“Anything else, Wayne?” Ron then asked. The Hufflepuff smiled slightly, and Ron could tell he was proud of having offered so much already.

“We don’t know who we’re up against or what they can _really_ do,” Wayne continued. “I mean, I know I don’t know even close to everything about that group, let alone their abilities, and I don’t think anyone outside of that group knows. With that in mind, we need to figure out who we’re up against and trick them. They’re better than us when it comes to full-on fighting, but what if we managed to weaken them or trap them? If we do that, we might have a chance.”

“Excellent ideas, Wayne,” Ron declared. “Now, who has what supplies? I’ve got a bunch of stuff from my brothers, but we’re going to need everything we have to win this, and that includes every idea we can get. Speak up if you’ve got stuff and ideas, and let’s get started.”

…

“They’re up to something,” Ginny decided as those not participating in the test watched from another room on the special screens that Harry had used quite often the year before.

“Of course they are,” Harry replied while rolling his eyes, an amused smile on his face. “Your brother is taking charge again, and they’ve actually thought of Privacy Charms so that those out there won’t find out what’s going on.”

“This is going to be quite the show,” Tracey agreed.

The three pranksters laughed to themselves, wondering how those out in the forest would do against traps made with pranks supplies without them there. Then again, the pranking trio that would be taking over for them _was_ out there, as were many who had long since grown used to finding pranks.

It was going to be interesting.

…

Invisible, Blaise crept on, slowly moving around the area that had the Privacy Charm around it. He had been assigned guard duty, keeping an eye on the seventh years and being ready to send a signal back to the others when they began to move. So far, he had been doing this for fifteen minutes, and they were about to reach the agreed upon time limit when the others would attack despite their not moving yet.

Suddenly, a flash of light went off right in front of Blaise, and he started slightly, blinking to try and see again. Unfortunately, it didn’t work, so he quickly dropped to the ground on his stomach, just in case he was attacked while trying to get his vision back.

Closing his eyes and rubbing his left hand over them, Blaise waited for the flashes of light in his eyes to dissipate. However, whatever the flash was, it had been really bright, and Blaise had been looking right into it. The colors in his vision were barely going away, even with his eyes closed, and this left him a lot more vulnerable than he usually was.

In fact, it was only his training of dodging spells blindfolded that allowed Blaise to sense the spell headed his way and roll to his right, ending up on his back just as the blast hit the ground where he had been. With an effort that required thrusting out before jumping, Blaise ended up on his feet, wand drawn and ready to defend himself, despite his still blurry vision.

From his right came the very faint whistle of a well-thrown knife, and Blaise stepped backwards just in time for it to fly in front of him. After that, more and more knives went flying towards him. Unfortunately for Blaise, he knew he wasn’t Harry, who had practiced with throwing knives so often that he could dodge twenty-five of them and still not get hit by the Stunners being thrown, all of this blindfolded. No, Blaise managed to escape the knives, but the Stunners were too much for him, and he suddenly knew no more.

…

Graham led Natalie and Euan through the forest, all three invisible and connected by a string of magic. They were moving at a fast pace, Graham knew, but their job was to scout out the area and disable any traps they might find.

_At least the others recognized that we were the best for this job, what with the other three sitting this round out with Daphne, Susan, Justin, Padma, and Hermione,_ Graham thought to himself as they came across a very obvious string trap and automatically cut the string with a quick Cutting Curse from Natalie’s wand.

Graham had had a bad feeling about this when Blaise had failed to report back before or at the twenty minute mark like they had agreed to. It made him think that the seventh years had gotten the drop on him somehow by doing the unexpected, and Graham didn’t like these thoughts or feelings.

A tug on his left wrist through the magical string made Graham stop and glance toward where he thought Euan would be. From there, Graham looked around, suddenly spotting the well-hidden flash bombs the twins had made and provided for the HPs. They were set to go off when someone was within five feet of them.

Tugging both strings to let them know he had spotted the trap, Graham thought quickly. Flash bombs were a tricky thing to set off without walking into them, and they would give off a bright enough light that the seventh years would come running. Before he could try and think of a plan, however, Natalie suddenly threw Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder into the area before sending Stunners at each of the flash bombs, setting them off within the darkness so that they weren’t seen. It had been a good plan that allowed them to move on quickly.

As they continued to circulate, Graham, Euan, and Natalie continued to find and dismantle even the best-hidden traps, but the sounds of fighting had begun to ring out in the forest. They should probably head back in that direction, but Graham knew their orders were to take out any traps because they had the keenest eyes for them of those in the forest, so it would save their teammates many problems if they completed their task.

However, the sounds of battle were distracting and hard to listen to. They couldn’t even block the sound from their ears because they needed to be able to hear if someone was trying to sneak up on them… just like someone was at that very moment.

He and Natalie tugged on their string at the same moment, showing they both knew the sound was coming from her side of the triangle they had made, but they didn’t change their speed or direction. _Let the person think he has caught us unawares, and then we’ll get him when he least expects it_ , Graham thought as his eyes caught sight of more flash bombs as well as one of the portable swamps the twins were still selling like crazy due to the picture provided by Harry of Umbridge getting trapped by the thing and pranked on it.

He sharply tugged on both strings attached to him and came to a stop as he did so. Turning away, Graham made sure his two best friends could feel his string. They would, hopefully, get the message as he lifted his wand over his shoulder and sent a long-range Cutting Curse in the direction of the flash bombs, setting them off where none of them could see it.

“Argh!” their follower exclaimed, obviously not realizing they had turned around and purposely set off the flashes. Thanks to the sound of his voice, three Stunners hit him while he was still blinded.

After tying up Zacharias Smith, Graham led the way again, their job still incomplete.

…

Ron crouched low on a large, thick branch in a tall tree right on the edges of the main fights. His plan would have worked if it hadn’t been for their underestimating the ability of their opponents. He should have realized that their staying in the same house as so many pranksters for so long would give them a better ability to spot traps, especially from those not as experienced as they were.

Ron had also noticed three people run off before the actual fighting began, all invisible and connected. It hadn’t taken him long to realize that those three were the second pranking trio of Graham, Euan, and Natalie, meaning they had been sent out to dismantle whatever traps might had been set throughout the area.

As Ron looked on, he was glad that his plan had at least given them a fighting chance. At least half of the best fighters in the school were Stunned and tied up, though it came at the cost of three-fourths of the seventh years. It wouldn’t be long before Zacharias was found by the trio and Stunned, and after that, well, everyone else was already here and fighting. Still, they had given it their best shot, and it was likely this would be the best competition their teachers would have during the testing, so Ron knew none of his classmates would be ashamed.

Seeing that the last of his friends had fallen to Stunners, Ron reached into his pocket and pulled out his shrunken broom as well as a pouch. Returning the broom to its normal size, he attached the pouch to the side of its handle and slid onto it, turning the broomstick invisible with a tap of his wand.

This was the final part of the plan, the last ditch effort to at least try and win.

Rising into the air, Ron flew until he was right above the group but still in the shadows so that nothing would give them forewarning. Then, he reached into the pouch and pulled out a handful of the Stunner bombs the aerial squad normally used in their maneuvers against giants and Death Eaters created by the Room.

With practiced and careful aim, Ron lobbed all of the bombs into the group, watching as they went off and sent them all flying, unconscious before they even hit the ground again. When Ron realized the forest was disappearing, his eyes widened slightly in surprise, but he headed down to the ground and began healing and waking up everyone.

Just as everyone was beginning to stand, Harry led those who hadn’t been in the forest into the room, and Ron watched as they spoke to the others with colored Journals for a minute before turning to the seventh years, who were all standing in a group behind him.

“You won,” Harry informed them. Ron could hear the shocked and surprised outbursts from his classmates behind him. “Your plan was well thought-out, especially that last part with Ron using the Stunner bombs to take out as many as he could at the end. Despite you not seeing them, Euan, Graham, and Natalie had slipped into the battle right at the very end of it, which meant everyone was in that area when the Stunners went off. It was very well played, and I believe we know what we need to train you in, now.” Harry then grinned slightly. “Next time we meet in this group, expect to be taught how to set traps better.”

Ron and his classmates laughed lightly at that. They knew that had been their weakness, and many in this group would be the perfect teachers for that, what with their pranking experience.

“You’re dismissed, but please, don’t pass around what the test is,” Harry requested. “If you must, however, you can tell the rest of the school you beat us, just as long as you don’t say how.”

Still chuckling, Ron led the seventh years from the room, all of them bursting out into an excited conversation about the battle the moment they were in the castle proper.


	34. Chapter Thirty-Four

Harry looked around the table carefully. The group that had been gathered was made up of Ron, the strategy group, the leaders, and everyone with a colored Journal. It was Sunday evening, and all the testing had been completed. Regular training would begin the next afternoon.

Right now, however, they had something even more important to discuss: Plans for how to prepare for a battle that could come at any time during the school year.

Everyone knew Voldemort wanted Hogwarts. Voldemort also wanted to kill Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter. The easiest way to make it all happen was to attack Hogwarts with a large army, and thanks to all the information Harry was given through his various sources, they knew that Voldemort was building up his army quicker than anyone would like. Raids had decreased in number, but their deadliness had increased as a result. Things were becoming dangerous outside the castle walls, and everyone knew that the war would be coming to them eventually, so they would prepare.

“This is obviously a strategy meeting,” Harry began, looking around the table. “Leaders are here to pass on instructions to anyone who needs them, and it’s also good to get more opinions and ideas. Now, as our seventh years learned Friday evening, traps can make all the difference in a battle. Hogwarts is _our_ home field, so we had best take advantage of it, eh?”

“Our wonderful teachers have agreed to help set up any traps we might create or think of to make sure they’re invisible to those who might be looking for them,” Ron stated as he took over, nodding in the direction of the colored Journal group. “However, before they’re willing to do this, everyone _else_ has to collect the traps or at least make the ideas so that they can be built, and _we_ have to figure out where to place them.”

“Why us?” Rose Zeller, a third year Hufflepuff, asked. “Why would we be doing most of the work?”

“Because you need to learn that we can’t do everything,” Maya suggested innocently, and Harry rolled his eyes.

“Some of us will be building any traps you can’t,” Hermione added, “so we’ll be doing our share.”

“We’ll also be giving suggestions when we feel they’ll help,” Hannah said softly.

“Mostly, though, the reasons you lot are going to be doing most of this is because we have enough to do, and we want to see what _you_ can do,” Ginny interrupted before anyone else could make the young students feel even worse. “Everyone in this school has the mind to do this, you just have to try.”

“We _will_ help all of you,” Harry promised, “but in the end, this is going to be your project. We’ve got other things we’ll be working on to set up around the school. To help you, though, Tracey, Ginny, and I will be willing to make things you need to make your traps, and what we can’t do, we’ll ask the twins to make. If you need supplies from the twins, ask any of us, and we’ll get them for you within the week. If you’re unsure about the placing of a trap, we’ll help you figure it out, and we might even make suggestions or change your ideas to fit better if we think it will help, but like I said, this is _your_ project, not ours.

“Now, Ron, why don’t you bring up the ideas you’ve already had?” Harry suggested.

…

“Hey, Bradley,” Hermione called as she finally caught sight of the Ravenclaw she had been looking for using her Journal’s Map.

“Oh, hi, Hermione,” the sixth year Ravenclaw replied as he turned and saw who had called him. “Did you need something?”

“In fact, yes, could you come with me?” Hermione asked. Bradley shrugged and followed Hermione as she led him into the Den and one of its study rooms, where Padma and Terry were waiting for them. “I found him, finally.”

“We saw,” Terry replied, gesturing to his open Journal amongst the many sheets of paper, open textbooks, and half-filled notebooks.

“Okay, what’s going on here?” Bradley demanded, though Hermione could tell he was trying not to be too demanding, obviously realizing who he was talking to.

“Near the end of the summer, Natalie came to us with an idea to help the HPs in a battle, and after some discussion with Harry and Tracey, we’ve got a possible idea to make it work,” Hermione began. “Unfortunately, it’s going to take a lot of research, time, and energy to make happen, especially if we want it to be done sometime in the next few months, hopefully before anyone attacks us. Here, come look at this.” Hermione led Bradley over to the notebook where the most recent notes and ideas and research had been written, letting him read over the basic idea and skim the rest of it.

“You’re trying to make a communication system that’s portable and works completely off of magic?” he questioned, and Hermione nodded, spotting Padma and Terry doing the same out of the corner of her eye. “Well, you’ve already got an amazing start on this project. Why do you need me?”

“Because almost all of that research was done in the last week of summer,” Padma told him, and Hermione watched as Bradley’s eyes widened. “We’re NEWT students _and_ teachers of the HPs, Bradley, and we just don’t have the time to research and work on this like we wish we did.”

“What we need from you is for you to get the rest of the sixth year Ravenclaws and anyone else interested, except for the fifth and seventh years of any House, and research this idea,” Terry continued. Bradley’s eyes were wide, but he also seemed interested.

“We’ll help when we can, and don’t be surprised if Harry, Ginny, and Tracey suddenly drop in and make you go on a completely different path for your research,” Hermione added with amusement in her tone, smirking slightly because she knew they would be doing just that, “but we decided we needed to hand off most of the research to someone else. Bradley, you’re going to be in charge of this.”

“You want _me_ to be in charge of a project like _this_?” Bradley gasped, and Hermione could tell his shock level would have a hard time getting any higher than it already was.

“Yes,” Hermione, Padma and Terry said at the same time. “You’re the best person for the job,” Terry continued, “and we know you’ll make sure it gets done.”

“What do you say?” Padma asked.

“I-I don’t know what to say, but I’ll make sure this project gets done!” Bradley declared, his shock giving way to determination. “I’d better go talk to the others about this… can we use this study room for the project?”

“Of course,” Padma exclaimed. “We’ve already put that it’s permanently in use for a project on the board in the main room. Just make sure you do any research in here so that none of the teachers get suspicious. It means you’ll be checking out a lot of books from the library, or at least copying the pages from them, but it’s best to keep all of the research in one place.”

“Yeah,” Bradley agreed. “Well, I’d better start asking people if they want to help…”

Bradley quickly left the room, and Hermione sat down in her chair in relief. They had been worried he would say no, and he really would be the best person for the job.

“At least we now know this project will be completed efficiently and effectively,” Terry declared, and Hermione agreed quietly, unable to disagree with that.

…

“Hello, Professor,” Harry said as he set his bag next to his normal chair and settled down into it. “I hope you had a good summer despite the circumstances.”

“It could have been worse,” Professor Snape replied. “Now, you’ve been keeping up with the raids, correct?”

“Better than most, I suspect,” Harry sighed. “And before you ask, yes, I did make sure those who ran away due to their parents joining the Dark Lord had a place to stay for the rest of the summer when they came to me for help. If they still need a place after this school year, I’ll make sure they have it, whether the war is done or not.”

“Thank you for the reassurance,” Professor Snape said with a nod, gratitude barely noticeable in his tone, but Harry caught it. Harry knew his professor truly did care for his students and their well-being; he just didn’t show it very often. To hear that those with no home always had a place to go would be a relief for the man. “How much do you know of the Dark Lord’s actions and movements?”

“From what I’ve learned, he’s trying to attack less so that his forces aren’t captured as often, but he’s also planning his attacks more thoroughly so that they do more damage when they happen,” Harry began, having expected this question and prepared for it. “My best guess is that he’s building up to something big, perhaps even attacking this very castle sometime in the near future, like the Hat said.”

“The Dark Lord has been working with the giants and Dementors and werewolves, getting as many of them on his side as he can to increase the ability of his army to do damage,” Professor Snape explained, and Harry pulled his Journal out of his pocket to write this down. “He has complete control of all the Dementors, and the Dementors are breeding rapidly. Most of the giants will go where he orders and do damage, but he is still working to convert the rest. The werewolves, however, are split quite evenly between working with him and staying neutral; none will work against him.”

“And what about the number of Death Eaters?” Harry asked after he finished writing all this down. He and the others had guessed at much of this, but to have it confirmed was both a relief and a scary thought.

“From the Pureblood families, he has gained most of the adults in Britain, and many from the Continent have taken his Mark as well,” Professor Snape admitted. “However, while he has the older generation, whatever you’ve done here at Hogwarts has lost him the next generation. It has angered him greatly because he had been looking at the Slytherins and some of the Ravenclaws for more followers, and now he has been forced to look away from Britain to increase his numbers.” Harry smirked as he heard this, enjoying the unintended effect of his actions at Hogwarts.

“Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, the Aurors working in their own countries aren’t stopping the Dark Lord from gathering new followers, and his numbers increase every week by at least five, if not ten. By the end of this school year, his army will have hundreds of Death Eaters alone, and that is the most likely time for him to attack as he will feel he is at his strongest.”

Harry sighed sadly as he heard this, but he dutifully wrote it down before asking his professor, “You have told the Headmaster about this, correct?”

“Of course, and he has standing orders for the Order of the Phoenix to be prepared to Apparate or Floo to Hogwarts at a moment’s notice if the Dark Lord attacks,” Professor Snape stated. “Unfortunately, even if Kingsley Shacklebolt does manage to get the Ministry’s Aurors here, it most likely won’t be enough with the numbers the Dark Lord hopes to be able to attack with. We would need hundreds of fighters and a miracle to win in the battle he plans to bring to this school. The best we can do is hold him off so that you students can escape.”

Harry nodded in agreement while internally smirking. The Hogwarts Protectors might just be the tide changer in the fight when it came down to it, what with the traps and other plans they were making and would hopefully have ready by Christmas.

“Thank you, Professor,” Harry said gratefully. “If you have any more news…”

“I’ll be sure to pass it along,” Professor Snape agreed with a nod.

…

“Do you remember when it would take at least a month before first years could get Journals?” Harry asked his friends as they looked around the Den as first years began learning from the older students how to use their new Journals.

“Yeah, and now they’re getting them within the first two weeks,” Susan agreed.

“How long do you think it will take for the first years to get Journals in, oh, ten years?” Maya wondered aloud as they all began walking towards the Room of Requirement to begin training.

“Less than a week,” Neville stated matter-of-factly, not hesitating even a moment. His tone made it so that no one could disagree.

…

“You sent for me, Headmaster?” Harry asked as he sat down in the chair across from Professor Dumbledore, looking at the older man over his desk.

“Yes, I felt it was time for us to speak again, as it has now been two weeks since term has begun,” Professor Dumbledore admitted, and Harry settled back into his chair, nodding. “I believe the Sorting Hat made it clear when it said there is a very good chance that Lord Voldemort will attack within the year, and my sources have confirmed this possibility.”

“That’s what I was thinking as well, Professor,” Harry agreed. “My own sources have pointed to Tom trying to keep his Death Eaters out of prison because Minister Bones has been so effective in capturing them and not letting them breakout. He’s also been building his army up, which points towards a large attack. What’s a better place to attack than here? Tom wishes to kill both of us, and he wants Hogwarts, so why not do both at once?”

“My thoughts exactly,” Professor Dumbledore sighed. “The professors are preparing for the chance of an attack, and the Minister has agreed to meet with me to discuss the possibility of an attack, but there isn’t much more I can do without knowing when it will be.”

Harry realized that the Headmaster cared for his students and didn’t want them to have to go through a battle, especially not one at the level that Voldemort seemed to be preparing for. Of course, Professor Dumbledore didn’t realize that his students knew what was coming, knew that they could die in the attack, and knew that they were going to fight anyway.

“Well, my information has to do with what foreign Ministries are doing, both to help themselves and us…” Harry began, hoping to distract the Headmaster from the thought of Hogwarts under attack. It wasn’t really something anyone wanted to think about more than they had to, after all.

…

Harry heard Draco groan as he closed yet another textbook before banging his head onto the table. No, wait, he had let his head fall onto the textbook, Harry realized as he glanced over at his blond friend, one eyebrow raised.

“This is even worse than last year!” Draco complained, keeping his voice quiet so that he wouldn’t get kicked out of the library.

“If you’re complaining now, not even a month into the school year, I’m very afraid to find out what you’re going to be like when Easter comes around,” Astoria told her boyfriend as she finished writing either a word or sentence on her essay. Harry couldn’t help but agree with Astoria, though he knew everyone was going to be complaining when that holiday came around, the OWL and NEWT students the loudest.

“Don’t remind me,” Draco muttered, lifting his head just enough to bang it down onto his book again, obviously not looking forward to that.

“What’s the matter, Draco?” Harry sighed, putting down his pen to face his friend properly.

“Potions essay,” Draco grumbled as he lifted his head to glare down at his sheet of parchment. “I can’t find the information Professor Snape wants.” Harry rolled his eyes as he glanced at the book Draco was using, knowing without even opening it that it was the wrong one.

“That’s because you’re looking in the wrong book, Draco,” Harry informed him, reaching into his bag to find his copy of the correct text. “ _This_ is the book you’re supposed to use. You can borrow that, but I want it back when you’re done, got it?”

“Yeah,” Draco replied, already flipping to the index. “Thanks, Harry.”

“No problem,” Harry told him with a shrug, actually looking at Astoria, who was thanking him silently. He really didn’t mind since he had already done that essay last night, anyway. At least this would get Draco to shut up so that he could finish his Runes translation sometime in the next year. After years of being the son his father had wanted him to be, Draco really did know how to be a pain in the arse.

…

“Harry, do the students _know_ that I can see their Journals?” Remus asked him one afternoon as they watched the other seventh years play an improvised game of hide-and-seek in the Quidditch pitch, using the spells Remus had taught them for the past three weeks to hide.

“Only those who stay with us,” Harry replied while shaking his head. “I haven’t mentioned it to anyone. Besides, they knew better than to use them during tests.”

“Oh, I know,” Remus agreed. “None of them use the Journals while I’m testing them in some way, but when I’m lecturing, most of the class uses them.”

“That’s because Journals are really good for taking notes, or did you not know _that_ , Remus?” Harry asked in amusement. “I use mine to take notes all the time. They do have unlimited parchment, so it’s quite useful.”

“I haven’t really thought about it like that,” Remus admitted. “Forgot Samuel added that function to them…” Remus trailed off, but Harry just continued to watch his classmates enjoy themselves.

“Didn’t think you had,” Harry finally said after a little bit of silence. “Anyway, I’d best go join them. Can’t let them have all the fun, can I?”

Harry quickly left the teachers’ box they had been watching from, charming himself and pulling on his Cloak as he went, leaving behind an amused Remus.

…

“Much better!” Harry told the seventh years as he looked around the room. “For the most part, I only know the traps are in this room because I’m looking for them specifically and know how you hide them. Very few would spot them, now. Any comments before we leave and start something new next time?”

“I was surprised by how much effort goes into your pranking!” Anthony Goldstein called out, and everyone laughed as Harry just grinned.

“Surprises everyone when they realize it, even the twins!” Harry replied.

“I’ll admit I didn’t expect to be using Professor Lupin’s lessons in concealment for this,” Ernie Macmillan informed the group. “He wasn’t lying when he said that those spells could be used in more ways than we could probably imagine.”

“And those spells can also save your life if you use them well,” Harry added. “Anyone else? No? Well, then, I’ll see you again in two days. We all have homework to do, I know. Let’s just survive our NEWT year so that the homework goes away!” There were groans and laughs from the seventh years as they left, leaving Harry to remove the charms from the traps before dismantling them.

…

“Does anyone else think that they don’t really need the specialized lessons anymore?” Neville asked one afternoon in the Room of Requirement about a month into the school year.

“I’ve been thinking that since we started training them again,” Susan admitted. “Those learning to heal have learned everything we know, and we’re all learning together now.”

“Most of them have learned as much as we can teach them, really,” Astoria agreed. “I think it’s time we start having one training session an evening for whoever can make it where we have them teach their fellow students what they’ve learned from us. They can all just come and go so that they get their homework done, and it will allow more time for other things to be done.”

“If there’s a minimum of three sessions a week, it might work,” Harry slowly said. “However, I think we should make Sundays the day where we do mock-invasions with basically everybody, beginning them with strategies and plans being taught.”

“That could work, but the aerial squad and strategists should continue to meet at least once a week,” Ginny decided. “While we could probably get away with a monthly lesson in each specialization to make sure they’re keeping on top of things, the aerial squad needs to constantly practice just like the Quidditch teams do.”

“Yes, and we should have random tests in the evenings and on Saturdays where we call in various people and have them fight against us,” Hermione said while she wrote the ideas down. “It will keep everyone on their toes because they’ll never know when they’ll be called or what environment they’ll be fighting in.”

“You know, this is probably the best sort of training we could offer them after how much work they’ve been putting in,” Theo admitted. “We all know they’ll train without us, so this might work.”

“And if we have to, we can always add to the training at a later time,” Padma added.

“Let’s work on getting all of these plans completely straight before we introduce them to the others,” Harry stated. “From there, we can figure out what to do.”

…

The students of Hogwarts took to the new plan like a Hippogriff to air. First years were still being trained by Harry and his friends, but by going to the evening sessions and learning from the older students, they were picking up things faster than first years ever had before.

Cross-teaching had the advantage of passing on skills that many wouldn’t have even tried to learn without it, and it allowed Harry and the others to just walk among the students and help where they felt it was needed.

This new style of training was working quite well, and everyone hoped they could just keep training like this rather than needing to go back to more intense training, but something made them fear the old training would come back eventually.


	35. Chapter Thirty-Five

Lord Voldemort sat at the head of the dining table in the Manor he was staying in, watching as his Inner Circle argued over how they would be invading Hogwarts. They had been given the estimated number of followers they would have for it, and from there, they had begun debating who would lead what.

Of course, Lord Voldemort just watched on, knowing how the attack would happen but listening to see if a better idea would come about. The wards would never stand against the full brunt of his attack, especially if all of his followers added to the power, and with the Dementors and giants and werewolves, even if they were in human form, he would have the advantage of numbers.

Even if Amelia Bones provided Albus Dumbledore with every Auror she had at her command, they would never win. Their numbers were too small, and despite Hogwarts being a castle, defending it would be difficult, especially once his Death Eaters got inside of it. The idea of the students being able to help was laughable, and Dumbledore would never allow them to assist in any case.

No, Lord Voldemort knew that the direct approach would be how they would fight and win this battle, allowing him to finally kill Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter while conquering his birthright.

…

Harry swung his sword and watched as the hand of a Death Eater was cut off, wand still clasped in it. Before the Death Eater could even scream, a Cutting Curse had decapitated him, allowing Harry to move on.

All around Harry was chaos as the oldest students of Hogwarts fought to keep the Death Eaters from entering the castle, the aerial squad helping as best they could from up above, the giants already taken down. Behind Harry were bangs and crashes as Death Eaters fought the younger students within the Entrance and Great Halls, the traps that had been set up for an hour before the invasion began hitting them hard.

Cries of pain carried around the grounds of Hogwarts, but fellow students backed out of their own fights to heal their friends, helping them stand up again and rejoin the fight. Death Eaters fell left and right as teamwork showed that Hogwarts had the upper hand, especially with their swords and daggers and knives. It seemed like the Death Eaters didn’t even stand a chance, turning to attack one student just to fall to the Stunner of another, wands summoned and destroyed almost by instinct.

Harry allowed a spell to hit his sword, turning the metal blade just right so that the spell went flying back at its caster, sending the Death Eater flying. A Cutting Curse left the tip of Harry’s wand with barely a thought as he spun and ducked all at once, his leg kicking out to knock the feet out from under a Death Eater, who was then Stunned and tied up, his wand blasted to pieces.

Standing up, Harry backed away slightly, and his back hit someone else’s. Turning his head just slightly, Harry saw that it was Astoria, and he continued to fight, protecting her back while she did the same with his. When Harry had to turn to the left to fight another Death Eater, Astoria felt his movement and moved with him, sometimes handing off an opponent to him as they moved, and he would do the same for her when she had to move.

Finally, though, a Death Eater forced them apart, and Harry moved on, swinging and casting as he made his way through the fighting. Here and there, he paused in a free moment and cast healing spells on himself before continuing on, not allowing himself to be defeated.

Suddenly, the Death Eaters, grounds, and castle all disappeared, leaving a bunch of sweaty, hurt, and tired students standing in the main room of the Hogwarts Protectors area of the Room of Requirement. Water appeared beside everyone along with both damp and dry towels. Everyone began to wipe themselves off to rid themselves of sweat and any of the fake or real blood still on their person before using the dry towels. Then they all just drained the water as quickly as possible, all of them dehydrated.

When Harry was ready to move, he went towards where some screens sat, sitting down in the chair in front of them. Scenes from the battle began to play, and he both liked and disliked what he saw. No, the Death Eaters and giants and Killing Curses had not been real, but that didn’t mean that their mock-invasions shouldn’t be treated as if they were. Most had done amazingly, but some had obviously just been going through the motions, not realizing that that would get them _killed_ when a real attack happened.

Fortunately it was only the middle of October, and the chances of Voldemort attacking before Easter were slim, but Harry would have to make sure no one got cocky or felt that training shouldn’t be taken as if it was life-or-death.

In the end, though, that had been an amazing first time in that sort of simulation, and Harry would make sure the students realized this.

…

“The HPs are doing well,” Harry said as he leaned back on his bed in his dorm, looking into the mirror he was holding before him. The mirror showed him the living room of Marauder Manor, where Sirius, Tonks, Amelia, and Fleur all sat. “The first time we did a mock-invasion, some of them took it as a game that they didn’t have to try hard in, but I pulled those ones aside and made sure they took the next two seriously.”

“That’s good to hear,” Amelia told him. “Unfortunately, word on our end isn’t as nice. Voldemort has managed to get more followers than we thought he would from the Continent, and his numbers are still growing. I’m actually afraid he’s sent a few people to recruit from America as well, finding those not as pleased with their new way of running things and corrupting them to join the war over here.”

“What Snape told you seems to be holding true,” Sirius sighed, his habit of sneering over Professor Snape’s name long broken after Harry had pranked him for it each time. “Before the end of the school year, his army will number at least three or four hundred easily. Even with all the Aurors we have, the fight will be uneven.”

“At least until you count the students,” Tonks reminded him with a smirk. “The Hogwarts Protectors will make all the difference. In fact, we could probably just have the Aurors on stand-by and still win because of how much you’re preparing.”

“How about we talk about that _later_ , you know, when we’ve actually got all our plans ready and in place,” Harry suggested. “When that happens, Amelia, I’ll probably want to talk to you so we can decide how to deal with Voldemort attacking. Will the Aurors join in or stay on stand-by? Will Remus stay and fight, or will he come and get you and return after? There’s plenty we have to discuss in the future, but for now, let’s concentrate on what’s in front of us.”

“Well said, ‘Arry,” Fleur announced, smiling in his direction. “Zere is no need to ‘urry in zese zings just yet, not while we are still preparing for ze battle zat might be monz away.”

“True, true,” Sirius gave in. “Still, the increasing numbers that Voldemort is recruiting are worrying. His raids are killing hundreds of thousands of Muggles every time he has one.”

“And there’s not much we can do to stop them until after most of the damage is done,” Amelia finished with a sigh, sinking back into her armchair, her head resting against the back with her eyes closed. “It’s a terrible situation, but there’s really nothing we can do.”

“It’s not like we’ve got a sensor that tells us where the Death Eaters are,” Tonks added. “Snape is helpful, but he’s so busy in the school year that he doesn’t know where most of the raids are. His information is very useful, but it’s hard not to wish that he could give us a bit more, you know?”

“Believe me, I know, and I’m pretty sure it pains him to know that he can’t give us anything more,” Harry sighed. “Well, I’d better go work on my Transfiguration homework. I’ll pass on your regards to the others.”

“Bye Harry!” they called in various ways before the connection between mirrors was cut. Harry sighed before getting out of his bed to find his bag before going into the Common Room to work on his annoying essays.

…

Lord Voldemort watched, yet again, from a far distance as a large Muggle town went up in flames, screams echoing throughout the valley as the Muggles were killed and hurt and raped by his Death Eaters. Thousands had lived in this village, and now thousands would be dead, killed in the night, and there was nothing Amelia Bones or Albus Dumbledore could do about it now.

…

“Minister Bones, I’m sorry to intrude, but another applicant was found to be an unmarked Death Eater spy,” Richard Taylor reported to Amelia as he held out a folder. “Aurors took him to the cells, as usual, and they’re preparing to interrogate him before sending him to Azkaban.”

“Thank you, Richard,” Amelia sighed. She knew that he knew that she wasn’t upset with him. They were _all_ tired of these Death Eaters trying to infiltrate the Ministry. “You may go.”

Once Richard was gone, Amelia placed the folder onto her desk and put her head in her hands, elbows on the folder.

She wondered how many more times Voldemort would try this. This man made the count twenty-seven spies caught trying to get jobs at the Ministry since she had become Minister and authorized the use of Veritaserum on all of those trying to get jobs there. It was getting quite tiring to deal with, and Amelia couldn’t help but be curious about whether or not there was a reason behind continuing this when it was obvious that their security hadn’t weakened at all since the war had officially been announced.

Well, whatever Voldemort was up to, Amelia knew one thing: As long as she was alive, he would _never_ get her Ministry.

…

Lord Voldemort was furious when it was reported that his latest spy had been caught by the Ministry’s security yet again. Every effort he made to take over the Ministry failed thanks to the increased security that Amelia Bones had ordered. All visitors to the Ministry had an escort at all times, and visitors were kept away from certain areas of the Ministry. No one who even thought about trying to join him was allowed a job, and any spies who tried were arrested the moment the truth was out.

At the rate this was going, Lord Voldemort was just about ready to declare taking over the Ministry before killing Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter, and Amelia Bones impossible, even for him. In fact, it was getting to the point where he had decided to leave the Ministry alone until after the attack on Hogwarts, knowing he would need every single follower he had for that attack.

In fact, that idea was getting better by the minute…

…

The wind flew through Harry’s medium-length hair as he sped around the Quidditch pitch, Euan not far behind him as they chased after the Golden Snitch.

Slytherin was just barely leading in the Gryffindor vs. Slytherin match of the official Quidditch tournament, the score sitting at 160-140. The Chasers had been fighting over the Quaffle like it was a sweet for four hours, the Snitch never once being spotted — until now.

A Bludger came flying through the air towards Harry, but he just spun on his broom so that he was hanging on it upside-down, never once losing any speed or momentum. A yelp from behind Harry told him that Euan had barely dodged the Bludger, most likely losing speed, and Harry righted himself just as the Snitch began to dive. Harry racing after it. He couldn’t even look behind him to see where Euan was as he closed in on the Snitch while diving, which was something he was the best at as a Seeker.

Taking his right hand off his broom, Harry reached out to try and grasp the Snitch, his fingertips just beginning to touch it. Then, the second Bludger rammed into his side, sending him spinning right into Euan, who had just caught up to Harry, and they both flew off their brooms towards the ground, which was fortunately just a few feet below them.

“You okay?” Harry asked Euan while shaking his head and moving his right arm to see how badly hurt his side was. “Ow!” _Okay, so I most likely fractured a rib or three, which will mean yet another lecture from Madam Pomfrey, but I’ll be out of there in twenty minutes,_ Harry thought to himself as he stopped moving his arm.

“Sounds like you’re the one who’s hurt,” Euan commented with a grin that Harry couldn’t help but return. “You okay?”

“Just some cracked ribs,” Harry explained. “I’ll be fine once I go to the Hospital Wing.”

“You’ve gotta catch the Snitch first,” Euan declared with a smirk as they both stood, but Harry shook his head while grinning, lifting his fist up and opening it just enough to show the Gryffindor the golden ball that was sitting there. “Darn! You caught that while being hit by a Bludger?!”

“My hand was already around it when it hit, so when I closed my fist at the pain, I caught the Snitch,” Harry informed him with a shrug of his left shoulder. “We’d better let them know the match is over, eh?” Both boys chuckled as Harry switched the Snitch to his left hand before raising it above his head to a shocked silence before the Slytherins began to cheer loudly.

“You made my last match against Gryffindor a tough one, Euan, and I have a feeling you’ll dominate as Seeker once I’m gone,” Harry managed to tell his friend before the Slytherin team reached him and began to clap him on the back, all obviously taking note of the way he was favoring his right side and not touching it.

“WE WON!” Draco yelled with a cheer, clapping loudly as those in the stands made their way onto the pitch to cheer for the winning team.

Harry just laughed at how happy his friend was, knowing that, as captain, it was his right to be so pleased.

…

“Lots of traps,” Blaise commented as they looked at the large pile of supplies they were going to be secretly placing around the school very shortly about midway through November.

“Yes, but that’s a _good_ thing, remember?” Daphne reminded him while rolling her eyes.

“Guys, let’s just go over who sets up what, please,” Harry called from over by the large maps they had set up, looking them over with Ron. He hadn’t even looked up when the couple began talking, already mentally picturing where things would go. “Plus, we need to talk about the barrier again, remember?”

After that came a large debate over who was going to take control of what. Between the small Stunner bombs, sleeping powder in small balls, firework explosives, flash bombs, trip wires that would paralyze the person on contact even through clothes, and even more that the twins had provided or Harry, Ginny, and Tracey had made upon request, there was plenty to go around.

Most of the traps would be placed around the Entrance Hall for easy access, since that was the most likely entrance for the Death Eaters to use. However, good numbers of traps were going being placed at all of the secret passages in and out of the school, even those supposedly blocked and especially those open with easy access. The rest of the traps would find homes in the area surrounding each of those entrances.

Now came the discussion they all knew they had to have: How to deal with the barriers they were planning on placing around the school. Harry and Tracey had worked on the barrier Samuel Davis had created a while ago to block out anyone without a Journal from a certain area such as the secret room in the Den. It now could be set down deactivated and then be activated at a later time by using a spell they had already taught their friends, meaning they could keep Death Eaters, Order members, and teachers alike out of certain areas or locked in certain areas.

“I still say we should put one in front of the Head Table,” Harry told Hermione as she argued with him over it. “It’s not like it will be active, and who knows how much we’ll need that barrier during battle if the teachers and Order members don’t agree to us fighting! Plus, we could easily make the area behind it a prison for Death Eaters, just in case.”

“Does anyone else agree with Harry that we should put a barrier there?” Hermione demanded, looking around the group angrily. However, Harry knew everyone was used to her anger, so they were willing to raise their hands in agreement, showing Hermione that she was the only one fighting his idea. Honestly, Harry understood why she didn’t like the idea because the barrier was the perfect thing for a prank, but Harry and the others would never use it for that, not when it was something for the war.

“Fine, we can put a barrier there, but why in front of the entrance to the Great Hall as well?” Hermione questioned. “Isn’t one in there enough?”

“Hermione, we’re putting one in front of every entrance to the Entrance Hall and Great Hall because they’re the most likely places for battle to take place,” Tracey explained. “If we have to, we can activate the barriers and keep the fighting in those two areas rather than destroying the entire castle. Plus, you agreed to having one in front of the Den and the Room of Requirement, so why are you fighting against the Great and Entrance Halls?”

“She fighting against them because they’d be perfect for a prank if we wanted to do that, Trace,” Harry sighed. “Seriously, Hermione, do you see us taking advantage of the barriers we’re putting up in case of a _battle_ just for a prank?”

“Okay, you have a point,” Hermione admitted. “Sorry. Where else are we putting them?”

“I still say we should put them over the secret passages in and out of the school and possibly a few of the ones that could help us get around quickly,” Justin said. “It would save us a lot of time, effort, and traps.”

“It’s a good idea, Justin, it really is, but what would happen when the Death Eaters can’t get into the school that way?” Maya asked before answering her own question. “They’d leave and come in another way or blast down the barriers to get in or let people know that there might be barriers throughout the school. We need these to stay a secret, remember?”

“Okay, not in and out of the school, but how about on these three passages?” he suggested while pointing them out. One was quite close to the Room of Requirement and would lead them all the way to just a few corridors away from the Entrance Hall, and it only took about a minute due to it being a slide and a moving staircase similar to the one outside the Headmaster’s office side-by-side. The second was the main shortcut everyone used to reach the Den from the Great Hall, and the third took a person from the third floor right outside the castle at ground level.

“I think those three really should be protected, just in case,” Tracey agreed, and Harry nodded. Justin’s pointing out those three had been quite smart as they would be perfect for the HPs, but they wouldn’t want Death Eaters attacking students in them.

“If we’ve covered all the places we’re going to place barriers, I’ve got one question to ask: Should we teach someone else the spell to activate them?” Harry questioned, looking around the room. It seemed to him that everyone was split between the idea because they really didn’t want to teach something like this to anyone else, but they all knew that, as the leaders of the HPs, they’d likely be too busy to activate anything during the battle.

Ron coughed, then, drawing the attention to him. “I would suggest teaching it to Demelza, actually.”

“Demelza?” many repeated, but Harry was thinking it over, realizing Ron’s point. A Gryffindor, so she’d be willing to fight, and a leader, so her learning it wouldn’t be too upsetting to anyone else. Plus, Demelza was a fifth year, so she could be close enough during the fighting to be told to activate any barriers during the fighting, if how they were practicing meant anything.

“She’s a fifth year leader, which means no one will complain and she’ll be in the middle of the battle, so telling her to activate the barriers wouldn’t be as hard as, say, telling Euan, even with the communicators that are being worked on,” Ron explained. “She’ll be in the middle of the fighting, so breaking away to get into the Entrance Hall or Great Hall wouldn’t be very hard. Demelza also has a good head on her shoulders and can keep a secret when she has to.”

“Anyone disagree with the idea?” Harry questioned his friends, but no one could fault Ron’s reasoning. Besides, Demelza was friendly and known to them all, and they all liked her. “Thanks, Ron, that probably saved us another hour of debate.” Ron laughed along with the others, all of them knowing it was just the honest truth. “Now, we’ve got some barriers and traps to set up, so let’s get moving.”

…

“So you’re going to be teaching me how to activate shield barriers hidden around the school in case you can’t get to them during battle?” Demelza asked, most likely to clarify, Harry guessed.

“Yes, and we all agreed you would be perfect for the job,” Harry told her. “So, do you want to learn?”

“I’m the only person without a colored Journal learning this?” Demelza asked quickly, most likely still shocked by it, but Harry just nodded silently. “It would be an honor, then.” Harry could only grin.

…

“I feel like we’re never going to be done making these things,” Ginny sighed as she passed a partially-completed Marauders Map to Tracey while accepting another from Harry. The three of them had decided to do it like an assembly line just to get it done quicker, since all three had parts that they specialized in.

“Yeah, well, we need a bunch of them for the strategists, especially when it comes time for the battle,” Harry reminded her, though Ginny could tell he was just as tired as she was with this. “We’ll eventually have enough.”

“For now, we just need to sit tight and keep on working,” Tracey finished with her own sigh, not even looking up from the Map in her hand as she poked at it with her wand.

“How many do we need again?” Ginny asked as she added to the charms on the Map in her hand.

“We’ll need at least six or seven large Maps for each floor, then at least one of each floor that’s zoomed in, meaning multiple per floor,” Harry recited, not even looking up as he used their Master Map to draw a floor plan on the parchment in his hand. “After that we’ll need a few more portable ones, just in case, plus there should be a few of just the grounds and then extra of the Entrance and Great Halls. Basically, we need at least another twenty Maps before we’re done.”

“Ugh,” Ginny groaned, knowing that would take at least another two or three hours. “I guess we’re going to be here a while…”

 


	36. Chapter Thirty-Six

When Remus saw people snickering as he walked to the Head Table in the Great Hall on Monday of the third week of November, he sighed and turned to Severus.

“What did they do to me this time?” he asked, already knowing who had pranked him.

“Your hair is emerald and silver with two snakes nesting in it, one of each color,” Severus informed him, his lips twitching in amusement, the other professors trying not to laugh along the table.

“Could be worse,” Remus mused as he waved his wand and pointed it at the entrance to the Great Hall, hearing moans of disappointment when the prank disappeared.

“How did you know how to get rid of it?” Minerva asked, looking at him in surprise.

“I live with two of the three biggest pranksters in the school at the moment, Minerva,” Remus sighed. “Believe me, after four summers of their pranks, you know how they think and do things. Speaking of which…” Remus turned towards the table with the teens who spent much of their summer at Marauder Manor. “Ginny, Tracey, and Harry, detention in my office tonight!”

“ _Moony_!” Harry groaned loud enough for the entire Hall to hear, most likely knowing it would amuse everyone and trying to do just that. “Isn’t it bad enough you cancelled the prank before it was supposed to be done? Now you’re going to put us in _detention_?”

“Do you want me to make it tomorrow night as well, Harry?” Remus questioned, trying not to smile at his best friend’s son’s antics.

“No, Professor Lupin!” Harry called loudly, turning back to his breakfast and pretending to be serious for a few moments before bursting out laughing along with the Hall.

“He was aiming for the laughter, wasn’t he?” Pomona Sprout asked Remus, and he nodded while smiling gently.

“The three of them know the detention won’t really be more than helping me grade some of my essays for an hour or two,” Remus admitted. “They’re just aiming for a laugh to rid the school of some of its tension.”

“Well, they’ve always done a good job of it,” Filius declared quietly, and Remus could only smile.

…

“Draco, we’ve practiced enough!” Daphne yelled at their captain. “ _Some_ of us have homework we need to do, and we don’t want to just rush it all at the end. Besides, our next match isn’t until January — it’s still December!”

“Oh, fine!” Draco called back. “Practice is done so the pile of homework awaiting us NEWT students can be lowered at least a bit.” Graham was the only one who could laugh on the starting team, but all of the reserve team joined in due to their being fourth year or below, so they didn’t have as much homework as OWL or NEWT students.

“Thanks for that, Daphne,” Harry told her as he got close enough. “I thought we would be out here for another hour, which meant we’d be up until long past midnight doing homework. _Why_ are our professors torturing us so much?”

“Because they think more and more homework actually helps for our exams?” Blaise suggested as he flew over. “It’s either that or they’re sadistic and hiding it behind their masks of being a teacher because they love torturing us so much.”

“It’s the first one, idiot,” Daphne sighed, hitting Blaise’s arm while shaking her head sadly.

“Oi! I’m just trying to lighten the mood before we get sucked into our homework,” Blaise exclaimed, but Daphne just continued to shake her head as they landed outside the changing rooms and she headed into the girls’.

“Just leave it, Blaise,” Harry suggested before entering the boys’.

…

Harry watched from a side room on screens as the students of Hogwarts proved that they knew a war was coming. Random students numbering a dozen were in a small village fighting against Hermione, Daphne, Tracey, Hannah, Neville, Blaise, Graham, Natalie, Euan, Padma, Terry, and Draco. Everyone had two swords, four daggers, fifteen throwing knives, a broomstick, dragonhide armor, and their wands for the battle, but nothing more. They would have to use anything they might find in the village to fight as all pouches had been left out of the training simulation.

At the moment, the random group of students was building three different forts while actually hiding in three buildings a little ways away, using the thread they had found in one of the surrounding houses to set up a trap. One of the students was a seventh year who knew how to place charms on a string and then hide the string in plain sight, charming it so that those who touched the string wouldn’t feel it. That meant anyone who touched those strings would be instantly Stunned.

Of course, on the other side of the village, Harry’s friends were taking normal objects such as chairs and tables and brooms and transfiguring them to look like the twelve in the group, animating them to walk and look around as if looking for an attack. The real people were invisible and behind them, walking very slowly as they followed the animated dummies towards the hidden maze of charmed string.

Within minutes of reaching the maze, all of the dummies had been Stunned along with half of the group. It had taken a little bit for the group to realize they should just stop moving and send out large blocks of marble all around them to destroy the strings so that the trap was broken. Unfortunately, it had taken them so long to figure this out that all of those Stunned had been captured and locked up on the cellar of a house that was empty and actually looked untouched.

The group of six got together, keeping some distance between themselves in case of an attack — a habit learned from Harry taking advantage of his friends being so close that a spell that paralyzed anyone touching one another worked easily, winning him a one-on-twenty fight in moments — as they slowly moved through the village. A few revealing charms led Harry’s friends toward one of the houses with students in them, and it didn’t take them long to find the windows and just fire Stunners into the house until they heard thumps as each person fell. Another revealing charm told them that everyone was unconscious, and they moved on, finding the cellar with the others and freeing them after disabling the protections on the trapdoor.

From there, Harry’s friends split up and found the other two houses, Stunning those inside with an overwhelming number of Stunners. The village disappeared, and Harry’s friends revived the others, congratulating them.

In Harry’s opinion, that fight could have gone either way. It had been an interesting one for sure.

…

Fawkes sang a light trill as Albus Dumbledore sighed, shoulders slouched as he looked out the window over the snowy grounds of Hogwarts, students running around and throwing snowballs at one another. He could see, right in the middle of the largest snowball fight out there, Harry and his friends showing off their prowess with magic by making the fight very unique.

His students were having so much fun, yet they were always so sad. This war was hurting them so badly with the deaths that occurred and loss everyone had felt whether personally or through friends. Professor Dumbledore knew that he wasn’t the only one to feel it; the students and other teachers felt it, too. Unfortunately, none could do anything about it.

And the war! Oh, how Albus Dumbledore hated to think of the war, but it was one of the topics at the forefront of his mind. Rarely could he think of anything else, for even the thought of his own students brought it to his mind.

How could they win this war? Yes, Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived and the one of the prophecy, wasn’t dark as Albus Dumbledore had feared, but Harry wouldn’t listen to the Headmaster when he tried to speak of Horcruxes. With the only leads he had coming up empty, Professor Dumbledore was afraid that Tom Riddle would remain “immortal” forever.

He had hoped that Harry would be able to convince Horace last year to give them a memory that could possibly confirm how many Horcruxes Tom had made, but Harry had never listened, and so Albus Dumbledore had been forced to say things to his old friend he had never wished to say to him. At least Professor Dumbledore had learned that Tom had split his soul into seven pieces, though finding that information had cost him Horace coming back this year as a professor, despite what he had told the students and staff.

Unfortunately, that information did him very little good if he had no idea where to look for the Horcruxes — well, except for the most deadly and worrisome one. He had been watching one Harry James Potter for over six years, and at the end of Harry’s fifth year, when the teen had had a vision of the Department of Mysteries from Tom, the Headmaster’s worse fears had been realized. The famous scar on Harry Potter’s forehead contained a piece of Tom’s soul, the Horcrux he had never intended to make.

This meant that Harry would have to be hit with another Killing Curse, and Albus Dumbledore just did not understand the Slytherin well enough to know what he would do if the Headmaster told him of this fact. Had Harry been a Gryffindor with a different path through Hogwarts, Professor Dumbledore would have felt safer saying that Harry would sacrifice himself for his friends, but this Harry Potter wasn’t like that. The sole Potter could decide that potentially dying just to kill Tom Riddle was too much for him and leave.

Albus Dumbledore suspected that wouldn’t be the case, but until he was sure of what Harry Potter would do, that would have to be his secret…

…

Ginny sat in the library next to the only one of her brothers still at Hogwarts, both of them doing their homework. Or, they were trying to do their homework, but Ron kept getting distracted by the sight of Hermione reading a book and writing an essay a few tables away, which in turn distracted Ginny.

Barely withholding a sigh, Ginny thought about how Hermione and her brother had been dancing around one another since the summer. They talked together quite often, and she had heard from Neville that Hermione sat with Ron most of the time in class. Ginny herself had caught both of them glancing at one another when the other wasn’t looking. The one thing they hadn’t done was ask the other out!

This time, Ginny allowed herself to sigh, drawing the attention of her aforementioned brother. “Ron, if you like her so much, go _ask her out_ ,” Ginny told him quietly. Ron looked shocked and almost… scared.

“Ginny, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he tried, but they both knew it was hopeless, and he dropped his face into his hands.

Watching her older brother like this made Ginny realize that he had never actually dated since coming to Hogwarts, sticking more towards Dean and Seamus than anyone else, and then he began to spy for Harry and grew more independent, though he had plenty of friends due to the HPs. It made her feel a bit sick to realize that she truly had been neglecting her brother all these years, and it had only gotten worse when the HPs were formed because she had so much to do. Well, it was time to make it up to him, at least a little.

“Ron, take it from me, you need to just talk to her,” Ginny said softly, putting a hand on his shoulder. “As much as you hate to think about it, I’ve been dating Harry for almost three years now, and we’ve both helped many of our friends get together. You need to stop avoiding the topic and just tell her how you feel. You might be surprised by what she says in return.”

“You think so?” Ron asked, glancing up at her with his blue eyes, his face both hopeful and worried, obviously afraid of being rejected. Well, Ginny wouldn’t say it, but Ron had no need to fear being rejected, not by Hermione.

“I know so,” she replied, smiling and nodding in Hermione’s direction. “Go, and take your stuff.” Ron nodded and began packing up, glancing at Hermione and then at her. When he was done, he stood and then glanced down at her.

“Thanks, Gin,” he told her, a hesitant smile on his lips.

“Anytime, Ron,” she reminded him. “Anytime.”

Ginny watched as her brother walked over to Hermione and sat next to her, drawing the bookworm’s attention from her homework so that they could talk quietly. Hermione looked shocked as Ron spoke earnestly, but Hermione’s shock soon turned to happiness as she nodded and hugged Ron. Ron sent a smile in Ginny’s direction before focusing on Hermione once more, and Ginny knew her work was done.

With how Ron had matured after all that he did his first few years at Hogwarts, changing his opinion of Slytherins so much that he was now close to a large number of them, studying more than ever before, and just growing up overall, well, her brother had made himself worthy of Hermione. Ginny couldn’t have picked a better partner for either of them if she had tried.

…

Harry stood leaning against the wall near the door of the study room that had been taken over by those working on the communicators, watching and listening with Ginny and Tracey as the researchers debated about what would and wouldn’t work.

From what Harry could tell, they had completely gotten the material and shape and size for the communicator, even finding spells so that they would adjust to each person after only seconds, but they were having trouble figuring out how to send out and receive any sort of signal as well as how to distinguish between people. It was very good work, considering how much they had finished. Harry felt that they only needed one or two more ideas before it would all snap together because they had most of the research they needed for all of it; something just wasn’t working correctly.

“Any ideas?” Ginny asked in a whisper without looking at him or Tracey. The three of them had gone largely unnoticed by the rest of the occupants in the room due to their distraction, and they were hoping to keep it that way so that they wouldn’t be dragged into the research.

“I was thinking…” Tracey began slowly, turning to look at Harry. “Do you still carry your special books around with you all the time?” Harry nodded hesitantly, knowing Tracey was referring to the various journals and notes that had been written by others such as his parents or Samuel. “Can I have the Journal one for a minute?”

“Sure,” Harry agreed with an easy shrug before opening his school bag and reaching into the pocket along the side of the larger-than-it-appeared bag that held the book. “Wait… are you thinking what I think you’re thinking?”

“Probably,” Tracey replied as she took the book from him and began flipping through the pages quickly, Harry looking over her shoulder as she came to the part that they both knew they wanted to read. “Think a slightly modified version of this would work?”

“Well, if we took out those parts and added in something while changing that a bit, it probably could,” Harry decided after thinking it over, pointing at various parts of the notes Samuel had written. “Of course, we’ll have to change it ourselves before passing it on, but it’s probably what they need for it. However, there’s still that other problem to deal with. Wait…” Harry flipped through the book and pointed to other research Samuel had done. “That could be modified to fit this as well, but it would take more work, so it would probably be best to just point them in the right direction and see what they come up with.”

“As long as we check any and all modifications before they even try to use them, sure,” Tracey had to agree with a shrug and a nod.

“Okay, confused Gryffindor who can’t read that book here,” Ginny declared, and they closed the book while laughing lightly at her.

“Don’t worry, you’ll hear in a minute,” Tracey promised as Harry clapped his hands a couple times to catch the attention of those in the room, startling many of them.

“Tracey and I have a couple ideas to help get rid of those holes in your plans for the communicators,” Harry announced once they were all quiet and facing him. “We’ll modify a spell we have so that it can find the magical signature of a person and allow the communicators to recognize each person with one by name so that they can send messages to only those who they’re meant for. You should have it in here within a few days.

“We also realize that you should probably look into the spells that allow wirelesses to work in our world,” he continued. “It’s how the Journals work, just in a different way than you’ll be using. If you need help or a suggestion or just want us to check over what you’re doing, you can come to us because we’ve got plenty of information on that. Unfortunately, we’re the only two who can read the book, so it would be easier if you just research it yourself and figure it out on your own.”

“However, before you even try to use a spell like that, bring it to us to look over first, since we already had a somewhat general idea of what the spell should look like,” Tracey ordered, making it obvious that they _would_ do it or face the consequences.

“Well, that’s certainly a train of thought we haven’t even touched on,” Bradley decided as silence reigned in the room for many long moments, everyone else in the room besides Harry and Tracey shocked at the idea they had proposed. “Didn’t even think about how similar this would be to a wireless. Thanks.” Bradley turned back to the others, who were coming out of their shock finally. “We should hit the library to get the books we’ll need to research this. Come on.”

Harry smirked as Bradley led the still-shocked students from the room, knowing that the communicators were now that much closer to being completed.

…

Standing on the ramparts of Hogwarts, Harry watched as explosions tore apart the grounds while the aerial squad took care of the giants in record time. As those who had been out on the grounds to set off the large explosives that the twins had recently sent for testing backed up towards the castle, Harry called out the order for those watching from above to join the battle, following his own orders as he pulled out his broom and flew to the ground, shrinking it again and shoving it away the moment he was on the ground.

The grounds were a mess, but much of the attack had been held off as students worked to keep Death Eaters within the Entrance Hall as best they could with spells and traps while the rest moved around the grounds, wands and swords and knives and daggers moving together to take them out, though Harry was fighting a grin as a bit of the cherry jam that the house-elves had provided for the blood of the Death Eaters lands near his mouth so he could lick it up. The purpose of the jam was to show that blood could be unpredictable in what it did was on their bodies, moving and covering them this way and that — all without truly disgusting any but the most “fashionable” girls, who had reluctantly agreed to it in the end.

From the sounds he could hear around them, Harry knew that the giants were all out of the fight and out of the way because the aerial squad was taking out large numbers of Death Eaters. Distant screams from the direction of the castle spoke of what was occurring in there, and he was a bit relieved to be on the side _with_ the twins’ products, thank you very much; those two could be _scary_ when they needed to create things for a battle.

Of course, when Harry ran out of Death Eaters sooner than he expected and saw the grounds changing into the normal room before his eyes, well, he knew they had been successful in teaching the students how to deal with an attack. They had gotten much quicker, and their fighting skills had improved with the experience the mock-invasions gave them against so many opponents.

Lifting his arms so Ginny could clean him of the jam, Harry looked around the room and couldn’t help but feel proud of what these students had accomplished, all without the teachers — except Remus, of course, but he didn’t count — finding out a thing. It truly was something to be proud of.

…

“Would you look at that list?” Harry sighed while standing in the Den, where the professors had placed the list for students who wished to stay at Hogwarts for the holidays, realizing everyone would sign it if they planned on it due to how the school seemed to work. The entire sheet had been filled and a second, longer page had been added and filled up as well.

“Purebloods had nowhere to go if their parents joined Tom,” Maya reminded him, looking over his shoulder at the list. “See? There’s Brandon, right there. In fact, at least half of that list is most of the students from Grimmauld Place last summer. Only the few with younger siblings that are being taken care of in one of the safe houses the Minister set up specifically for them with both Aurors and volunteer workers to keep them company are going home from that lot.”

“And many of these are those who were orphaned since the war began,” Euan added, pointing out a few names. “Some have been living with family they aren’t very fond of, so they’ve decided to stick around since so many others are staying anyway.”

“It makes sense, but it’s so sad that Christmas is darker just because of Riddle,” Harry grumbled as he and his two friends turned away to sit with some of the others in a group of couches, homework around them. “When this is all over, I hope we’ll be able to change the laws so well that the chance of a Dark Lord coming back before at least half a millennia passing, at the minimum, is almost impossible.”

“We hope so, too,” Euan told him, gently grabbing Harry’s arm so that he looked down to see Euan’s sad smile before continuing to the others, knowing that he would do all he could in the Wizengamot to make a difference when all was said and done.

 


	37. Chapter Thirty-Seven

“Well, Tonks is well on her way to having that kid of theirs,” Harry commented lightly, expertly dodging the hard slap to his shoulder while snagging Tracey’s wrist before she could pull it away again. “Now, now, Trace, don’t be mean to me for making an observation. I mostly said that because she looks like she’s glowing in a way that obviously isn’t from a spell.” Harry let go of her wrist, and she stuck her tongue out of him while pulling her arm back. “Anyway, when’s her due date?”

“Sometime in late April, as you should already know,” Tracey reminded him. She rolled her eyes, and moved to sit down on his bed while Harry waved his wand so that his clothes flew into their places throughout the room.

“I’ve been a bit busy lately, _as you should already know_ ,” Harry retorted sarcastically without even looking in her direction. “Anyway, are there any plans for the break?”

“Other than getting the smaller-than-usual pile of homework out of the way and training? Not really,” Tracey sighed. “Think we should plan a huge snowball war again?”

“Of course, and this time, let’s set up in the middle of the night so they can’t complain about our distracting them,” Harry decided with a mischievous grin.

“You just don’t want Daphne trying to hit you again,” Tracey told him laughingly. Harry at least looked sheepish,but couldn’t disagree with her. “We should probably wait a couple of days before that, though, because we’ll be doing homework for hours with what the professors gave us.”

“Again,” Harry muttered darkly, settling down next to her on his bed and lying back on it, his feet flat on the ground. He then sighed deeply and had to admit, “At least this is the last year we’ll be dealing with this.”

“No complaints about that from me,” Tracey agreed, “despite not wanting to leave Hogwarts.”

“Well, come on,” Harry groaned. He sat up and forced himself to his feet. “We’d best get downstairs before they come looking for us or think we’re planning pranks again.”

“That’s for tomorrow!” Tracey argued before they both began to laugh and she accepted his hand to pull her up before they headed downstairs.

…

“Are you sure it’s illegal to threaten and/or torture the professors so that they give us less homework?” Theo begged as he put down his pen and massaged his aching hand.

“Yes, Theo, it’s highly illegal, no matter how much every student wants to do it at least one point during their seven years at Hogwarts,” Harry sighed while also massaging his hand and flexing the fingers to try and rid them of some of the pain.

“At least we’re getting this done early so that we have the rest of break to do whatever we want,” Draco tried to say optimistically, but with only around half their homework done and the rest would take up at least the rest of the day, it didn’t really do much to improve anyone’s mood.

“When this is done, I’m pretty sure we’re all just going to collapse from exhaustion, Draco,” Daphne muttered while paging through a Runic Dictionary.

“I agree with Daphne,” Astoria said mock-helpfully from where she was surrounded by fifth year textbooks. While the others were sharing two sets of seventh year books, she was working alone, though her random questions were always answered by the older students.

“I’m pretty sure all of you agree with Daphne on that one,” Euan commented from the couch where he was reading a novel, the first of the teens to finish his work as he had the least, though Graham and Natalie appeared to be just about done.

“Oh, shut it, Euan,” Draco moaned, only to get slapped upside the head by Harry, who did it without even looking up.

…

“Can we make this quick?” Tracey whispered to Harry. “It’s cold, dark, and I’m tired after a day of homework.”

“Yes, Trace, we’ll make this quick, but we have to do it well,” Harry replied with a sigh as he waved his wand, an open pouch in his hand. “After all, the best way to recover from a pile of homework is a snowball war — well, at least in this house.”

Both of them laughed softly, getting to work.

…

“We should have known,” Daphne groaned as she ducked behind the wall of their fort. On either side of her, Astoria and Draco gave her confused looks. “We should have known that those two asking for a snowball war meant they had figured out a way to set up traps, despite them doing it without distracting us this year.”

“Yeah, we should have,” Draco muttered. “How _did_ they set them up, anyway?” he asked at a normal volume.

“The most obvious time to do it,” Astoria claimed, looking pained at the obviousness of it, though Daphne wasn’t completely sure she and her younger sister were on the same page yet. “Last night, we were all so exhausted from our homework that it wouldn’t have been hard for them to sneak out once they were sure we were all fast asleep.”

“Argh,” Draco groaned, lifting his head to look over the wall of snow just in time to get hit by a wave of snow that was activated by one of the traps all around the grounds. He slowly lowered himself before shaking his head to get the snow off of it, blinking a few times. “Okay, that was unexpected and annoying.” Daphne and Astoria both giggled at the sight.

“How are we going to deal with this?” Daphne wondered aloud once they had calmed down, still hunkered down behind their small fort walls, wand drawn with no idea what spell to use. “Usually I’d say we tunnel, but… Oh, we’re idiots.”

“Huh?” both Astoria and Draco questioned, looking shocked as Daphne muttered a few choice curses under her breath.

“We’ve been so busy hiding from the traps that we haven’t been checking to make sure there isn’t someone tunneling beneath us,” Daphne stated, face palming before letting out a sigh. “And I’m willing to bet they’ve taken advantage of it.”

“That would be correct,” Harry’s muffled voice called from below them just before the snow beneath them exploded upwards, sending them flying and destroying the fort they had managed to build. This set them right in the middle of the mine field that was the huge area of traps Harry and Tracey had created and hidden during the dead of night.

Snow animals suddenly began to form around them, leaving them surrounded. Daphne had an odd feeling that the easiest way to escape, creating a tunnel beneath them, had been somehow made impossible. Harry and Tracey weren’t stupid, as this whole trap proved, so they would never leave an obvious escape such as that open to them.

Before Daphne could even begin to think of another way out of this, some of the animals charged them while the rest leapt on top of them, sending all three crashing to the ground and covering them in layer after layer of snow.

…

Harry and Tracey were laughing as they stood watching their three friends get tackled by snow animals, looking as if they were drowning in snow. Maya, Graham, Euan, Natalie, and Theo were all watching from the other side of the scene, laughing as well. They had all made a temporary alliance just to get to watch Daphne, Astoria, and Draco get caught in the largest part of the traps they had set up.

“Okay, you were right, this _is_ worth the time we were out here last night,” Tracey gasped out, still laughing, and Harry smiled smugly for a moment. Then he caught sight of Draco yelling as a wolf jumped on him, sending him back into the snow, which made him burst out laughing again.

“Harry,” Tracey suddenly said sharply, and he looked at her to see what she was looking at. Then he noticed Graham, Natalie, and Euan were moving away while Theo and Maya began to wave their wands around, moving the snow at one another.

“It’s time to go into the tunnels,” Harry told her, and she nodded before they both pointed their wands at the ground. The light layer of dirt and snow they had left over the entrance to the tunnels they’d made last night disappeared, dropping them the short distance to the ground. With a wave of their wands, it reappeared again, making it look like they had never even been there. “Come on,” Harry whispered, “let’s get into the deeper parts.”

Together, they took off for one of the hidden entrances that led deeper into the earth, waving their wands to figure out where the others were so they could plan attacks. They would all be covered in snow by the time this snow war was done.

…

“Well, I think we know who won this round,” Remus commented in amusement as the teens entered the Manor a few hours after leaving. Daphne, Astoria, and Draco had the most snow and water and mud on them while Harry and Tracey had the least. Then again, that wasn’t really saying anything since they were all covered in the stuff. “Go get cleaned up. Samantha is making some cocoa for you, and it will be ready when you’re clean and dry.”

“Thanks, Moony!” Harry called as they all raced off towards the stairs, leaving Remus behind chuckling and shaking his head.

Remus headed into the living room, where Tonks and Sirius were talking together, Andromeda and Ted both just listening in. Sirius looked up when he entered, and the dog Animagus raised his eyebrows.

“Wouldn’t surprise me to find out that the others all teamed up on Daphne, Astoria, and Draco with how soaked they were,” Remus reported, yet again shaking his head in amusement as he settled down next to Tonks on the couch, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “It was also obvious Harry and Tracey went out last night after we were all asleep to set up traps, what with how destroyed the grounds are this time.”

“ _Again_?” Sirius moaned loudly, most definitely heard in the kitchen and possibly even upstairs. Remus knew it was because his friend understood it would be his job to clean up after them, just as it always was. “Why can’t they let the yard survive when they do this? _Why_?”

“Because it wouldn’t be fun that way, Padfoot!” Harry yelled from two floors up, drawing laughter from everyone else in the house. “You know you love us, Sirius!” he added, and Remus could just picture his cheeky smile as he said that, most likely picturing Sirius’ annoyed face as he yelled.

“Just get in the shower!” Sirius ordered him, his face annoyed but his eyes amused. “Why did we allow him to become a prankster again?” he asked in a normal voice, his tone exasperated, which Remus found ironic.

“Because he was already a prankster before we even knew him, so all we could do was teach him what we had done in the past?” Remus suggested with a shrug.

“Argh,” Sirius groaned, shaking his head and covering his eyes with a single hand. “I think I know how Minnie felt when we were in school, now. Wait, I did _not_ say that. Minnie will _never_ hear about this!”

Remus and the other adults laughed as Sirius looked around at them, completely panicked.

…

“Should we prank them?” Harry wondered aloud as he stared up at the ceiling and tossed a small, emerald green, rubber ball he had conjured in the air, catching it only to throw it up again. He was lying on his bed, and Tracey was leaning against the wall with a pillow to make it softer and more comfortable, her feet resting under his torso to keep them warm.

“I’d say no, but we really should,” Tracey replied, and Harry glanced at her to see her amused smile, catching the ball in his hand as he looked. He then went back to tossing the ball.

“We’ll at least make it Christmas themed, I think, but they’ve been annoying since we prepared the grounds for the snow war without them realizing it,” Harry reminded her. “If we have to deal with that, then they should deal with our revenge.”

“True… Very true…” Tracey muttered with a sigh, her feet moving beneath him slightly as she shifted. “So, have any ideas?”

…

When everyone in Marauder Manor woke Christmas morning, it was to find the entire house was green and red, including the people. The house, already decorated for the holiday, was suddenly even more Christmassy, with drawings of Father Christmas and elves and presents and reindeer and anything else that had to do with the holiday covering the walls, floors, and ceilings, moving around as they pleased. Mistletoe hung in more places than before, and every hallway and room had colorful strings of lights hanging from the ceiling.

Of course, it was only the first part — everyone being green and red — that had the most of the residents yelling “HARRY! TRACEY!” at half past five in the morning after the lights turned on super brightly to interrupt their sleep.

Down by the Christmas tree in the living room, Harry and Tracey were snickering, sharing grins as they had both colored their hair red and green for the occasion, though the rest of them looked normal. Of course, they had worn Christmas colors and made sure to put protections around themselves, just to be safe.

When the rest came down and realized they wouldn’t be able to hurt the two pranksters, those not as upset as the rest — the pranksters, so Remus, Sirius, Graham, Natalie, and Euan — all congratulated them on doing so much in so little time, especially as they looked like they had actually slept during the night.

From there, gifts and stockings were opened, breakfast was eaten, and a non-magical snowball fight took place with teens vs. adults, Tonks sitting out to be the referee and to hold onto the wands of all involved. After that, cocoa was had and stories were told, laughter and happiness obvious throughout the Manor, especially with the new decorations.

As those living in Marauder Manor went to bed that night, they never would have suspected what was occurring in the darkness of the waning moon.

…

Lord Voldemort hoped that these attacks would bring about deaths, but if they did not, the fear they brought to the Wizarding World was still an accomplishment, and oh did he know this would bring fear. How could it not?

“You all know your orders and where you are to go,” he told his Death Eaters before him, every single one of them he had at the moment — well, over two-hundred-and-fifty — kneeling and in their black robes and white masks, the Inner Circle in silver. “I expect only success. Do not fail me. Now, go, and fulfill the mission.”

Within moments, every Death Eater had stood and spun on a heel, disappearing from the room until Lord Voldemort was alone, waiting for news of success.

…

It was well past midnight before Hermione Granger finally went to bed, she and her parents staying up late to enjoy the little time they actually got to spend together between Hogwarts and her staying at Marauder Manor so often. Christmas had been quite enjoyable, and despite the invitation for all three of them to spend it at the Manor, they had agreed they wanted to spend the holiday with just the three of them this year.

Placing her new gifts into her trunk, which she had kept mostly packed due to the fact that she would only have to pack it again soon anyway, Hermione organized her trunk and added some of her freshly laundered clothes to it, knowing she wouldn’t need most of them until she got back to school anyway due to their being magical clothes.

Pulling her wand out of her hair, Hermione finally let the bun she had been wearing all day fall apart, twirling the stick of wood in between her fingers as she went to go close the curtains on her window before she changed.

A small flash of light in the middle of the street moments before a stream of yellow that destroyed half the street lights along the road made Hermione tense. Looking at where the small flash had been, Hermione caught sight of a white mask when another spell was used to destroy the rest of the lights, and Hermione knew what was coming.

“ _Pack_ ,” she whispered as she spun around, waving her wand so that everything in her room except for the furniture, even things she didn’t normally bring with her to Hogwarts, shrunk and organized itself into her trunk. The wooden trunk closed with a quiet snap once it was done, and she silently shrunk it before Summoning it and shoving it into her pocket.

Moving quickly, Hermione raced into her parents’ room, ignoring their startled yelps, and silently waved her wand to pack their things as well, all of it shrinking to fit into the suitcases they had in their wardrobe. One empty suitcase was left floating in the air as the rest joined her own trunk in her pocket.

“Hermione, what on Earth are you doing?” her mother demanded, but Hermione gave both her parents a hard, determined look. She knew it was the only way to make them realize that she had to be in charge right now, especially because it was _her_ world they were dealing with.

“Mum, Dad, we’re about to be attacked, and we need to get out of here _right now_ ,” Hermione told them matter-of-factly before turning and running down the stairs, the suitcase following her as she waved her wand so that the things they would actually want to keep flew into it while she moved. Footsteps behind her told Hermione that her parents were following, which relieved her. Right now, she couldn’t deal with her parents fighting with her, not about something like this.

“You both need to grab my shoulders and hold on tight,” Hermione ordered as the final suitcase flew into her pocket. She reached up and pulled out the pendant that was in the shape of the Hogwarts crest from under her shirt, holding it tightly in both hands as her parents finally moved towards her and grasped her shoulders. “Help,” she whispered, and the Portkey activated just as a Blasting Hex destroyed their front door, the wards that had been holding the Death Eaters off finally fell.

The three of them crashed to the ground at the gates of Hogwarts, and Hermione shakily stood, the most used to that method of transportation. After helping her parents stand, Hermione led the way to the gates and tapped them with her wand, declaring, “Hermione Granger, seventh year Gryffindor, Head Girl, and her two Muggle parents, requesting entrance to Hogwarts after escaping from a Death Eater attack on their home.”

Behind her, Hermione heard her parents gasp slightly as the gates opened, obviously recognizing her magic and the truth in what she said. Turning to smile reassuringly at her parents, Hermione led the way onto the grounds of her school, but she turned sharply when she heard thumps behind them. Through the gates, Hermione saw another Muggle-born, this one a second year, with his parents and younger sister, all on the ground and the Ravenclaw boy with his hands around his own pendant. Just as they stood up, another family appeared nearby, and then more and more.

That was when Hermione realized what was truly going on: Voldemort was attacking the Muggle-born families.

…

“Pendants being used by every single Muggle-born in Hogwarts!” Harry yelled as he looked at the list that continued to grow in the book made specifically to keep track of who used the pendants and when. “Voldemort’s attacked them _all_.”

There was silence after his statement, but then Amelia quickly used her wand to transfigure her night clothes into robes before disappearing into the Floo, obviously to the Ministry to get the Aurors on it. Everyone else was moving quickly to their rooms to change properly and get their stuff together.

Harry had an odd feeling their stay at Marauder Manor was about to be cut short, and he knew everyone else felt it, too. This attack had been set up to cause fear in the Wizarding World, which meant parents would want all students back at Hogwarts for their safety. Knowing Amelia, Harry knew she would probably declare it mandatory that all students use their Portkey pendants to return to Hogwarts before the day was out. She would also be sending out every Auror they had to along with people from Gringotts to draw up the best wards they could around every single house they knew held a witch or wizard unless they already had strong wards, even those Muggle-borns too young to attend Hogwarts and who most likely didn’t even know magic existed. It would be the only way to stop mass panic.

For now, those in Marauder Manor were dressed, their trunks packed, weapons hidden in various places on their bodies, and Journals were active as they all found places around the living room. The Muggle-borns were using their Journals, saying that the professors still at Hogwarts had taken them all into the Great Hall, where they were sitting with their families as those who had stayed at the castle joined them to see what had happened. Hermione and Justin, the only two Muggle-borns with colored Journals and the only two of their group of friends actually at the castle, had been named the leaders of the Muggle-borns, so they had been forced to explain to the professors what had made all of them Portkey to the school with their families.

Hermione reported that the Headmaster had paled greatly before quickly leaving the Hall. Professor McGonagall had then taken charge and was helping to calm down the families of the witches and wizards. The professor had actually asked Hermione for suggestions on how to keep them distracted until the Ministry and Headmaster had made a decision, and the Gryffindor Head Girl had recommended allowing the students to show those who had never seen the school around, showing their parents where they lived ten months of the year and what they had learned in their classes.

From what those near the pair were saying, it seemed there was a good chance that was what would happen, which pleased Harry as he had always been a bit saddened that those with Muggle family members could never show them where they lived most of the year. Plus, the Muggles would find Hogwarts to be just astounding.

However, all seemed to be at least somewhat calm at the school, even if having many confused Muggles there was a bit chaotic.

…

Amelia Flooed the Manor and told them all exactly what Harry had been expecting her to: all students were to return to Hogwarts by Portkey by noon with Amelia hinting that the Journals should be used to pass the word around so everyone was ready for the owl ordering this when it arrived, wards were being raised around the homes of those with magical family members, and arrangements were being made for the families of the Muggle-borns until they could return home. From what Harry gathered, Grimmauld Place and all safe houses the Ministry had would be opened, but Amelia had one more idea.

“Tracey, I know this might be a bit hard to think about, especially after last time, but could you allow us to use Davis Manor for just a week to house many of the families?” Amelia asked. “I wouldn’t ask, but we need as much room as we can get as quickly as possible, and your home is clean and ready to be used due to charms.”

“I think…” Tracey paused, looking down at the ground for a moment. “I think my parents would approve of Davis Manor being used in that way. Go ahead, Amelia, open my home up to the families, but please make sure everything is returned to the way it was when they leave.”

“Thank you, and charms will be placed on anything than belongs to you so that none of it will be tampered with,” Amelia promised before saying goodbye and pulling her head out of the Floo.

Tracey stood in place for a few moments before turning to head back into the living room, Harry and the rest following to let the students know that they should pack to return to Hogwarts when they received the owl.


	38. Chapter Thirty-Eight

When the students at Hogwarts saw Harry and his friends from Marauder Manor walk into the Great Hall at around nine in the morning, much of the students’ tension was finally released. Students began seeking out their leaders and learning if there was anything they could tell them that they hadn’t by Journal, which mostly meant Harry and the rest were telling them about what would happen to their families.

Finally, the students calmed down, and Harry made his way to where Hermione and Justin were sitting with their families, greeting them all calmly and with a small smile. Breakfast had appeared on the tables, and everyone was munching on it as they chatted, more and more students arriving and finding friends to make sure no one was hurt.

Everyone had been relieved to know that those who had been asleep when the Death Eaters came had been alerted by the wards, which made a sharp whistle ring throughout the house if no one was aware of the threat. Hermione had asked why it hadn’t rung in her home, and Harry then spent the next twenty minutes explaining how that part of the ward worked to her and her parents.

Eventually, Harry could tell that the entire student body had finally arrived and settled down in the Great Hall amongst the adults, many of whom were still talking about their tour of the castle. He knew that Amelia would hear about it soon from the Manor, so when the Minister herself came with four Aurors, he wasn’t surprised.

“Amelia, this is a surprise,” Professor Dumbledore said as he stood and walked around the Head Table to greet her.

“Yes, it is. I decided I would announce the Ministry’s decision myself,” Amelia told him before turning to face the Hall. “For those who do not recognize me, I am Amelia Bones, the Minister of Magic for Britain. Over the past few hours, since learning of the attacks, the Ministry has been working to prepare various safe houses until protections have been added to your homes. These safe houses have some of the best protections in our world, and most are completely unknown to anyone outside of a select few. You will be staying there for a week at the most before you return home. So, please, if you could, say your goodbyes and follow us to the various Portkeys that will take you to one of the safe houses.”

Amelia led the way back among the tables, stopping to hug Susan and pass her a note before leaving the Hall, the Aurors following her.

Families began to say goodbye to their children, and Hermione and Justin’s parents did the same, but before they could leave, Susan ran up.

“Auntie wants you to know that you’ll be staying with her and the others rather than at one of the other safe houses, since you’ve already been there,” she told the Grangers and Finch-Fletchleys, who looked relieved to know they would be going somewhere they had already been to and would know people there.

After that, Susan returned to her seat, and the parents and younger siblings left the Hall, leaving the students talking about what had occurred in the past twelve hours. The fact that it was the day after Christmas had been completely wiped out of most minds with all the excitement, fear, and adrenaline as well as exhaustion.

“It has been a long night for everyone, so I believe going to unpack and resting or doing something else would be a very good idea,” Professor Dumbledore announced to the Hall. The students all understood the unspoken order and quickly stood and left to go to their dormitories.

…

Harry’s Journal began to burn just after he had settled down on his bed to toss another conjured rubber ball into the air, his stuff unpacked. Sighing deeply, Harry placed the ball next to him on his bed as he sat up and opened his Journal, surprised to see it was the leaders who wanted to speak to him on their special channel.

_Harry: What’s up?_

_Susan: It’s like after the attack by the Slytherins last year, Harry. The students want to train right now._

_Bradley: No one fought the Death Eaters, but realizing how many of them there actually are to have so many simultaneous attacks made us all realize we need to be prepared for this._

_Demelza: Everyone wants to up the training again, somehow._

_Harry: *Sighs* Okay… tell them to meet in the Room in half an hour. We’ll do another mock-invasion, and the rest of us will decide what to do about the training later._

After getting positive responses, Harry closed his Journal and let out another deep sigh. He hadn’t even thought about this, but knowing how everyone reacted after a bad attack or a death to family members, he should have known that the students of Hogwarts would want their training to be increased so that they could feel like they were doing something that would protect both themselves and their families. It made sense, and it was a great motivator, but Harry had been hoping to avoid something like this. Now, however, he and his friends would have to figure out a way to increase training while not completely ruining their grades due to lack of time to do homework.

This was going to be tough…

…

After two mock-invasions, many of the students left the Room of Requirement to go shower and take a nap, exhausted after all they had been through. Others, however, went into the rooms that appeared around the main room, forming groups to train in on their own, wanting to continue.

Harry and his friends watched all of this from behind a Privacy Charm, sitting at the long table to one side of the main room.

“They want more training,” Harry finally sighed, looking away from the doors around the room and instead glancing at his friends. “What can we give them? Except for the first years, they’ve learned enough that they’re improvising just to do new attacks. Even the first years are doing well enough thanks to what the others are teaching them that they can improvise at least a little bit because they know enough. I’ve got no ideas this time.”

Silence followed this because if Harry had no ideas, then this would take quite a bit of thought unless someone came up with something quickly. Of course, with a group like theirs, they should have known someone would have an idea, Harry reflected after the conversation was over.

“Let them play games, of course,” Luna said from her spot at the table as she looked at the ceiling, her wand balancing on her forehead. Harry exchanged confused looks with the others.

“Games, Luna?” Astoria finally asked.

“Why, yes, the Licklespirts around us tell me that they want games to play that are similar to the mock-invasions we have them do but also very different,” Luna announced. “Also, the Licklespirts only leave you alone if at least one person is balancing his or her wand on his or her forehead.”

_Well, at least that explained that_ , Harry thought to himself, but he was also thinking about her suggestion, despite the odd way she gave it to them. From what Luna was saying, if Harry understood her, they should set up various rooms that would allow teams to compete with one another in ways similar to, yet also different from, the mock-invasions.

“Oh!” Hermione suddenly gasped, and everyone turned to her. “We could have a game similar to capture the flag!”

“That’s a good idea,” Justin burst out once he heard it, probably one of the few to understand it at the table. “And what if we set up games with a goal like one team inside a smaller castle than Hogwarts while the other has to get to a certain point or take something or someone or maybe even give them certain tasks to do?”

“That sounds like fun, and it will teach them to keep on task so that they might even retreat if it means the mission will be a success,” Terry agreed with a nod. Harry glanced at Luna and saw her smiling happily as she listened, still balancing her wand.

“How about we think of games, goals, and environments,” Harry told the group, and they got to work on it, everyone, even the usually quiet Luna, pitching in.

…

He ran down a corridor, his comrades left behind to deal with the ambush as he continued on towards the goal. In his hands was a flag, the wooden poles in the shape of a ‘T’ with the flag itself hanging from the horizontal pole.

The rules of this game were simple: get the flag all the way to the top of the tallest tower and place it where it obviously belonged. The problem? The flag bearer wasn’t allowed to use any weapons, only smoke, Stunner and flash bombs, and if the flag was stolen and taken outside the castle by the other team, they lost.

Now he was all alone, none of his guard with him anymore because the ambush had been so large. One of his teammates had taken a Stunner for him so that he could escape the battle and run towards the tower, but now he was almost completely defenseless. He cursed the fact that he and the others hadn’t realized the rules said nothing about Silencing and Disillusioning the flag and its bearer until they got to the top of the tower because it meant he was now running through the corridors, nothing to hide him from the enemy team.

Fortunately, he had been running daily, so he was still breathing easily as he found another staircase and tore up it as fast as he could, keeping his footsteps light while gripping the wood tightly, trying not to let it slip due to the sweat on his hands. He was nervous and listening all around him and looking everywhere he went for signs of an ambush.

Of course, he suspected his biggest problem would come when he got to the tower, because that was where the final defense was likely to be. Most of the team had been part of that ambush, just as all of his team had been required to fight it off, leaving him the sole person of his team to get out of it right away. It really worried him because there were at least five others around this castle, and who knew where they were?

Finally, just as he was beginning to pant heavily from the exertion of running up the entire castle, he had reached the bottom of the tower stairs. However, he wasn’t going to just go up there, not when he suspected it would be a trap. No, he put the flagpole through the back of his belt, tying his belt more tightly with the flag diagonal against his back. Then, he went to the nearest window and looked at the castle wall around him.

_Yes!_ he mentally cheered. _The stonework has perfect handholds!_ When he saw that, he quietly got onto the window ledge and grasped two handholds on the side of the window closer to the tower, hoisting himself out and onto the wall, where he found places for his feet before beginning to climb both sideways and up as often as he could, slowly making his way up to the windows of the tower.

When he was near the windows, he let go of the castle with one hand to push the flag down a bit more so that it wouldn’t be spotted when he peeked in the window to see what was there. Pulling himself up just enough to see, it amused him that the five waiting for him were facing only the door, and they looked rather bored. They wouldn’t even see this coming!

Reaching into the pouch provided, he pulled out three of each type of bomb and lobbed all of them except the smoke bombs into the room, grinning as they went off as he knew those inside the room would have been affected by one or the other. Pulling himself up again to check, they were all Stunned, so he forced himself onto the ledge and into the room, shaking out his aching arms as he looked around.

It was a basic, circular room with an obvious wooden door that led to the stairs. However, right in the middle of the room was a raised bit of stone, the main part square with a smaller circle on top that had a hole in the middle. This was obviously where the flag was supposed to go, so he pulled it from his belt and proudly placed it into the hole, pleased that he had managed this despite losing his entire team on the way. That would surely impress everyone, especially the leaders!

Around him, the castle disappeared, and everyone reappeared in a room empty except for a few of the leaders, the main three right at the front, and they were all clapping while looking right at _him_. He had never really been one to get noticed often, just going along with what needed to be done and usually given a normal job so that he didn’t stand out, but this time he had, and he had done it well!

“Well done, John,” Harry told him while the other leaders went to revive the others. It was only then that he noticed he was the only one not knocked out.

_Must have used Stunner bombs down at the ambush site once he had left,_ he thought.

Harry continued, “You did really well, carrying on alone and even finding a very creative way to get the flag to where it needed to be. The people in the tower won’t be making the mistake of only watching the door again after this. Well played!”

“Thanks,” John replied, his cheeks warm. He hadn’t even thought about how what he had done would teach the others how to play just a little bit better, but it would.

“Did we win?” one of his teammates asked, and John turned to nod, which drew cheers from his team and groans but clapping of shoulders from the other.

Of course, now John knew they’d be sitting through a lesson where they had to analyze what did and didn’t work and how they would improve it, so John thought of a chair beneath him and sat back, an armchair coming up to meet him. He might as well get comfortable, after all.

…

The Christmas Break ended and classes began again without much fanfare. Students trained and had snowball fights and relaxed during the break, but the familiar tension that had permeated the air the year before had finally returned to Hogwarts. In the end, it left things darker and increased everyone’s determination to train, especially Harry’s.

Though it most certainly hadn’t occurred to him right away, he realized that his friends, young students, had been attacked by Voldemort and could have died if not for the Portkeys. Once this thought had come forth, Harry felt that he needed to get better, sharper, because he was going to kill Voldemort, and he was going to make sure it was done right this time. If Tom didn’t attack Hogwarts — though the possibility of that was very slim, knowing the so-called Dark Lord — then Harry would go hunting for the monster himself, because the _thing_ needed to die.

Tom Riddle had caused so much death and destruction, and it needed to be stopped. If Riddle died, the attacks would stop, students wouldn’t be in danger, and the war would be over. Between the prophecy making Riddle believe they had to fight one another and all the history Harry had with Riddle and his Death Eaters, Harry was going to make sure he was the one to kill the bastard.

Harry’s friends didn’t even have to look for him anymore. When he wasn’t in class, at meals, sleeping, at Quidditch practice, or dealing with Head Boy duties, he was in the Room of Requirement. He did his homework there, using the room to get any extra books he needed for reference, and when he was done with his homework or needed a break, he’d join in on whatever game was going on or would just train by himself with a dummy. Not even Ginny and Tracey could pull him from there without a hassle, and it was worrying everyone close to him, not that he really noticed. Tracey had actually taken the mirror used to contact those at Marauder Manor from Harry just so it would actually be answered as he often ignored their calls or didn’t even notice it.

January sped by with a win in Quidditch for the Slytherin team, training being done by everyone at least six days a week, even if it was only for half-an-hour sometimes, mock-invasions being taken very seriously, the new games used almost constantly, and actual signs of tension in the students. Before, the tension was mostly in the air while the students tried their best to fight it and stay happy. Now, however, with Harry almost obsessed with training and the rest of the leaders of the school worried about him, students were arguing more outside of HP training. Siblings could be seen acting abnormally as they ignored one another, couples broke up over things they normally wouldn’t, friends were avoiding one another for days at a time, and chaos was taking over Hogwarts.

It was obvious as time went by and January turned into February that the students just weren’t handling the stress of the war as they had once done, which no one could really blame them for, not really. Professors were giving out detentions to those who were normally close in hopes of helping to restore relationships of various types, but even they had recognized that the problem stemmed from the fact that the role models of the school were finally showing the effects of the war in a way that wasn’t grief. Without that solid group to lead them, teenagers and preteens were acting their age during a very hard time, and the professors could do nothing about it but hope that the group could pull itself together before it was too late, before things couldn’t be fixed.

Unfortunately for those hoping for the best, it seemed things were only going to get worse before they got better. Within the central group of the school, even the closest of friendships and relationships were being strained. Harsh conversations with sharp hand movements or looks took place in the Great Hall, people were sitting with different people and sometimes at completely different tables to avoid one another, and Harry always seemed to have his nose in a book or his Journal, doing homework or writing plans for something or other.

It all got to the point where the professors, especially Remus, were beginning to lose hope. Then came the day Harry began to skip meals in favor of getting his homework done sooner so he would have more time for other things. When Harry missed so many meals it was a wonder he wasn’t starving, all of his friends put their differences aside to talk, trying to figure out how they could help as they realized many of their problems actually stemmed from Harry’s problems. That was the day the adults began to hope again.

…

Harry slashed out with his two daggers, both hitting the sword the dummy was holding with a _clang_ that rang throughout the empty room he was training in. Pushing forward with most of his strength, Harry actually managed to push the sword closer to the dummy, taking a step towards it, before he had to pull out, jumping back, careful to get out of range of the sword. He looked the dummy over, trying to decide whether or not he should keep going to just end the fight quickly so that he could move on to other sorts of training. In the end, he went for the quick way, throwing his knife and hitting the shoulder of the hand holding the sword, which the dummy dropped while pretending to be a realistic human in that position. He then moved quickly forward and stabbed it through the heart, the dummy deactivating in response.

Harry had been doing that to practice his strength and ability to get in close against a better reach. Next up was sword against daggers to make sure he could fight against someone with a shorter reach, and after that he would go sword against wand, since that was the most likely scenario of the three when Voldemort attacked, and he wanted to be ready. In the end, however, he would try two swords against wand and then wand and sword against wand.

He needed to be ready to fight Voldemort, to kill him. Too many had died, so many more could die if he didn’t end this, and Harry wanted to make sure it happened, no matter what the cost to him. It felt like everything was centered around Voldemort, now — fighting him, stopping him, killing him. Harry felt as if it was the only way out of the darkness that had surrounded him since Christmas, since he had realized how many could truly die with just one order from Voldemort, how many people he _knew_ who could die.

Nothing else really mattered except being ready to kill Tom Riddle when the time came.

…

“I’m getting sick of watching him do this to himself,” Ginny muttered under her breath as she and the others watched through monitors as Harry went through another one of the games with a team against another team. “He’s not eating, he’s obsessed with training, and it’s like he’s got nothing else to live for but this.”

“Because, in his mind, he doesn’t right now,” Tracey told her. “The deaths have gotten to him, even the ones that were stopped. You know he doesn’t want people to die, and he sometimes feels like people wouldn’t be dying if he was just out there fighting and killing Voldemort. Well, I think this is what happens when he lets that side of him take over.”

“Not anymore,” Ginny whispered softly, her heart hurting to see the one she loved like this. “Trace, can you handle training without us today? I think it’s time to slap a little sense into our leader.”

“Of course,” Tracey replied, not hesitating a moment. They both knew this had to happen, and Ginny could tell without even looking around that the others were smiling in relief at their conversation.

…

“Where are you taking me?” Harry demanded. “We’re supposed to be leading the training in five minutes, Gin! Let. Me. Go!” Harry ripped his wrist out of Ginny’s grasp, stopping them both by the half-frozen lake. They faced one another with their breaths puffs of white in the air, the layer of snow beneath their feet making small noises as they shifted their weight slightly. “Why did you bring me out here?”

“Because you’re an idiot, Harry James Potter!” Ginny yelled, and Harry took a step back as he blinked, not expecting to be yelled at, especially not by Ginny. “You’ve been training and training and training, not even noticing the fact that you’re making yourself sick and that the school is falling apart around you! What will it take to get it through your thick skull that the deaths occurring _are not your fault_?! So what if you think it’s your responsibility to kill Voldemort? He could have been killed in the first war, or others could kill him now, what with his Horcruxes gone. _Nothing_ happening outside these wards is because of you, Harry, so you don’t need to train like it’s the only thing you have! _Everyone_ is stressed because of what you’re doing, Harry, and I swear, you’re completely oblivious to the chaos that’s Hogwarts these days.”

Harry stood there, frozen in his tracks as he listened to Ginny. When she put things in that perspective, like she had once before done up to a point, pushing himself like he was seemed pointless. He had to admit he had been skipping quite a number of meals when he needed them the most, what with all the training he was doing. And what was this about Hogwarts being in chaos? How had he not noticed any of this?

“Ginny…” he whispered, looking into her hurt, brown eyes, realizing for the first time in a long while that he had been pushing her away for ages now, hurting her in the process.

“Harry, everyone is fighting around the school,” Ginny told him, her voice more normal as her anger dissipated. “Couples have broken up over almost nothing, siblings avoid and ignore one another, best friends fight like no tomorrow, and even our group has been affected. I haven’t seen Daphne and Tracey talk to one another outside of what they have to for over a week since their last argument, and Daphne and Blaise are rarely _not_ fighting these days. Hannah, Neville, Susan, Justin, Luna, Padma, Terry, and Hermione aren’t fighting with anyone, but that’s only because they’ve been eating away from the rest of us and don’t fight with one another either. Graham, Natalie, and Euan have been more distant than I’ve ever seen them, and Maya is always with Brandon and the others except for training. Need I go on?”

“Please, don’t,” Harry begged, feeling his heart burn from sadness and pain and guilt and the realization that by trying so very hard to avoid deaths by preparing to fight Voldemort, he had allowed everyone else to hurt one another, his world falling apart around him without his even noticing it. “How — how can I even _try_ to fix this, Gin? So much damage, so much pain, all because of me…”

“Harry, it is _not_ because of you!” Ginny exclaimed. “Yes, your losing yourself in training didn’t help, but there’s a war going on, and times are really hard. Tension has been high for over a year now, and it was only a matter of time before something like this happened. No matter how hard we tried, the war was going to get to everyone at some point, and it just so happens that that point was when you let it get to you. However, _you_ are the one who can fix this. I think you can figure out how, but it has to be you, Harry.”

“Maybe I can help them, but first, I think there’s something else I need to fix,” Harry said quietly, stepping closer and placing his hand on Ginny’s cheek, her head lifting up so they could stare into the other’s eyes. “I’m so, so sorry for pushing you away, Ginny. I don’t know what came over me. Well, okay, I do, but I don’t know _why_ it came over me, and now you’ve pushed it away. Will you forgive me?”

“Always, Harry,” Ginny whispered, standing up just enough to reach his mouth and giving him a quick kiss. “Come on, I think we have a lot to talk about,” she told him, placing her hand on the one still resting on her cheek and twining their fingers together, pulling him towards the rock he now realized she had been aiming for earlier.

Placing a Warming Charm on them both, Harry settled down with his legs crossed across from Ginny, their knees touching. Yes, they really did have a lot to talk about before they headed back to the castle, and they would make sure they got it all out.

 


	39. Chapter Thirty-Nine

“I’m pretty sure we  _all_ know about my recent obsession with training,” Harry announced sheepishly to all of Hogwarts as they sat or stood around the Den with a ward over the entrance so the teachers couldn’t enter; it was the easiest place for a group meeting that wouldn’t add further suspicions to that which the training already had. A few chuckles were heard around the room.

“Well, let’s just say I’ve had some sense knocked into me recently, and it made me realize what a mess we’ve all been lately with the tensions of war finally getting to us.” Harry watched as many people shared sad looks, silent apologies being sent around the room. “Because of this, for the next week, the only training anyone will be able to do is running laps and the basics in the main room. All other rooms will be unavailable to anyone, including my friends and me. Take the next week to find those you hurt, those you miss and apologize and make up. Fix the various relationships around here.

“Don’t do what I did and let the war completely possess you. Please, don’t let this war take what’s most precious to you, because it almost did it to me, and let me tell you, it’s _not_ a nice feeling when you realize what was happening, what almost happened.” Harry sighed, and he saw some sympathy from those around him. “Do your homework, catch up on your sleep, read a novel you’ve been putting off — basically, just relax this next week and spend time with your friends. After this, we’re going to go back to a lighter schedule, but instead of teaching one another every night, we’ll have that on Tuesdays and Thursdays. All other weeknights are for the games, and Sundays are still mock-invasions. Sound good?” A positive cheer came from the group. “Well, then, let the week-long break from training begin.”

Harry waved everyone off, and he just watched as friends, siblings, and couples found one another, talking softly with sad looks or hugging or just standing awkwardly as they tried to figure out what to say. Still, already relationships were healing from just a few minutes and getting to see him actually himself again, so Harry couldn’t complain.

“That was a smart idea,” Tracey commented lightly, and Harry turned to see her behind him. It was only a few hours since Ginny had dragged him outside, so he hadn’t gotten a chance to see her since getting his head on straight again. “Wouldn’t have thought of that, but it’s probably what will work best.”

“Getting a chance to sit down and talk worked for me,” Harry replied with a shrug, looking at her sadly. “Trace, I’m really, really sorry,” he told her, his shoulders slumping in his sadness. He knew she could have interrupted him at any point, obviously knowing that he was sorry, but they both knew he needed to at least get a chance to say it once. “Forgive me?” he asked hopefully, holding his arms out for a hug.

“Forgive you for what?” Tracey questioned. “Being an idiot, letting your guilt take over, for being you? Why would I ever need to forgive you for that? If you weren’t like this, you wouldn’t be Harry.” Tracey then moved forward and hugged him tightly, and Harry returned it, his head on her shoulder as he took in her scent, which he felt like he hadn’t smelled in ages. She was his sister, and he felt like he had been the worst brother these past couple of months. “You wouldn’t be Harry if you didn’t do something like this, but try not to do it again, okay?” Tracey whispered in his ear, and he nodded, smiling a bit, knowing he truly didn’t even need to be forgiven for this.

Lifting his head, Harry looked at Ginny and cocked his head to the side, gesturing for her to join them. She moved forward, and Harry lifted his arm off of Tracey so that Ginny could slip into the hug as well.

It felt good to be with them both again.

…

As the students sat around for breakfast, the professors noticed a change in how they interacted. Those who had been ignoring one another were suddenly laughing at jokes together or debating, rather than arguing, over homework or just sitting quietly. Of course, the change was even more obviously when Harry Potter and his friends entered the Great Hall and went to their usual table because they all stuck together. Harry had his wand in his hand and waved it, switching the food Theodore Nott chose with what Draco Black chose when neither was looking, causing much snickering as he hid his wand, before both boys figured out what was going on and glared at Harry, who just gave them an innocent look.

“Who do we have to thank for this, do you think?” Professor McGonagall asked curiously. “Remus, you know them best.”

Professor Lupin looked down over the group of teens he had seen grown up at least somewhat the past few years, and he knew quite easily who would have gotten some sense into Harry so that he would help the rest of the school: “Ginny.”

“It does seem like something she would do, doesn’t it?” Professor Snape mused quietly, looking thoughtful.

“Well, if she did, I believe we’re all grateful,” Professor Spout sighed, looking quite relieved. “I was afraid something even worse than just arguments was going to happen soon with how they were going.”

“Yes, it did appear they were headed that way, didn’t it?” Professor Flitwick squeaked as he looked over the students. “Well, they’re getting along fine, now.”

“It was a well averted crisis that, fortunately, didn’t require us to truly step in,” Professor Dumbledore added, his blue eyes twinkling happily at the sight of the students getting along again.

“Well done, Harry, Ginny,” Professor Lupin whispered under his breath, smiling gently as he watched them eat breakfast.

…

“Oh, no way!” Tracey yelled as she realized Harry had been the one to hit her with the snowball made from the slowly disappearing snow. “Traitor!”

“You do it all the time with Theo!” Harry called back as he laughed, ducking down before launching a snowball at Draco, who was facing the other way to aim at Daphne and Blaise. “Haha!”

Harry looked in Tracey’s direction and ducked down behind his very small wall of snow just as a bunch of snowballs flew over it, launched by an annoyed teenager. Rather than anger her further, however, Harry continued to aim at the others, nailing Astoria in the back and Daphne literally in the ear, forcing her to duck down and clean it out. Tracey was still upset, Harry knew, but she was also laughing at Daphne, and when their eyes met, Harry knew she would work with him and hit him later for the snowball to the head.

Worked for him, since it was only the third day of the week-long break, so they’d come out here again before it was up.

…

“Uh-uh, no way, I’m not going to play poker, not with you lot,” Neville declared as the Slytherins tried to get some of the others into the game. “You have perfect poker faces that none of us can read. I’d rather keep my money, thank you very much.”

“Fine, have it your way, then,” Draco told him with a shrug, and Harry rolled his eyes at the blond. Neville’s reasoning was sound, since it wasn’t uncommon for the Slytherins to walk away with most of the money when they played poker, which was why most wouldn’t play with them unless a large number of non-Slytherins were also playing.

“It’s fine, Neville, we’ll play, and I’ll take all their money again,” Harry promised, drawing a laugh from Neville and either annoyed looks or protests that he would  _not_  from the Slytherins. Harry just grinned in amusement.

…

“Should we do it?”

“Yes, they’ve gone too long without, and it’s time we remind them.”

“Well, then, let’s go get this ready, shall we?”

…

On the very last day of the week-long break from training, breakfast suddenly became a very chaotic affair when students began standing up and singing various songs, some singing together and others singing solo, but everyone sung at least once, if not multiple times. The professors were acting like judges, giving scores from zero to ten in the air above them with their wands, almost as if they couldn’t help it.

At their table, Harry, Ginny, and Tracey were grinning and exchanging high-fives after they had already sung their songs, pleased with the result of their potion, each one modified slightly to mean a different song, all of them charmed for the timing.

…

Harry and the others took over one of the game rooms, deciding to play a game of capture the flag with two castles for their first time training in a week. They knew that any of them making up a single team against their students wouldn’t be very fair, so unless they were only playing against one another, they usually split up to find various teams to play on.

“Who’s going to protect the flag?” Maya asked, and everyone turned to Harry, Tracey, and Ginny, who all sighed while sharing eye rolls.

“Fine, we’ll set up traps as long as we’re not the ones stuck here keeping watch, just in case they get past them,” Ginny stated, and the others couldn’t disagree with that.

“Neville and I will stay and watch the flag once you’re done,” Hannah suggested, waving a hand between them.

“Sounds good,” Daphne agreed. “How about I cover one of the two towers and attack from up there?”

“While you three do that, Maya and Terry can go into the tunnels to try and sneak into their castle,” Harry decided. “When Ginny, Tracey, and I are done with booby trapping the flag, we’ll go and set up down there before we go across the grounds to sneak in. Draco, Blaise, you’re going over the grounds right away when the signal goes off, okay?”

“Sure,” the two boys agreed with a shrug, Maya and Terry nodding along.

“Let’s get going, then,” Harry said, clapping his hands together before leading Ginny and Tracey upstairs with him. “Come on, I think we all know what we’re going to be putting around the flag, right?”

“Of course,” both girls replied with smirks on their faces. Oh, those who came after their flag wouldn’t know what hit them.

…

Euan, Graham, and Natalie were sent into the tunnels to try and sneak out the flag, and while they managed to get past Maya and Terry as they also snuck through the tunnels. They hadn’t even noticed the traps hidden around the entrance to Harry’s castle, as it was thought of, while the other was known as Astoria’s castle.

A single Stunner bomb fell from above them when they hit a tripwire that had been charmed so that they didn’t even feel it, exploding before it even hit the ground. Another delayed charm on the string Disillusioned them and sent them flying onto the walls, stuck there so that they wouldn’t be found until it was all over.

Above the tunnels, Draco and Blaise could be found trading spells with Hermione, Padma, and Justin near the middle of the area between the castles, Luna and Daphne assisting from the towers as best they could. Unseen by the fighters, a trio was moving very slowly around the edges of the fight, Disillusioned and dodging any stray spells that went their way, making their way towards Astoria’s castle. Along the other side of the fight, a single figure was also moving Disillusioned towards Harry’s castle.

Harry, Ginny, and Tracey slipped into Astoria’s castle, wands drawn and eyes open for any traps they knew had to be set up around the castle. With so many out fighting, there had to be; otherwise, their flag would be virtually unprotected.

Ginny suddenly grabbed both Harry and Tracey, freezing them in place, and all of them looked at the lion made of stone stalking the castle, obviously a guard keeping an eye out for intruders. They hadn’t even thought of doing something like that, and the work was obviously Daphne’s, so they would most certainly commend her on the unique idea when this was over. However, for now, they waited until the lion was gone before moving on.

Beneath the castle, Maya and Terry had reached the entrance to Astoria’s castle and had spotted the traps waiting for them. A few words exchanged, and they had realized what they were up against. The best defense would be to close their eyes and hit the flash bombs with a spell from a safe distance so that the Stunner bombs would go off with no one to hit. However, before they began their plan, they made sure to silence the area so no one would hear the explosions. Then, all they had to do was wait for the smoke to dissipate before climbing up the ladder and entering the castle, headed towards the flag.

In the other castle, Astoria had snuck in and was nearing the flag room in the middle of the highest floor. What she hadn’t realized was that Neville and Hannah had already seen her go by them and were letting her continue on, trusting in Harry, Tracey, and Ginny to set up a well-planned trap. When Astoria got to the entrance to the flag room, she waved her wand and was surprised to find that the room was empty, and no signs of magic were coming up, meaning no traps. This just made her very suspicious, but she cautiously opened the door and stepped inside.

Metal darts flew at her from the ceiling at an angle, and Astoria barely dove forward to avoid being hit, only to have to roll to her right to dodge the rock that was aimed at her head. She had landed on a net, which she barely cut a hole in with a knife before it sprung up, almost pulling her so that she was hanging from the ceiling in it. Now Astoria was worried, because it was obvious the pranksters had been booby trapping this room with both Muggle techniques and hidden magic, and she wasn’t sure what was coming next.

However, when nothing else came at her, she slowly stood, only to immediately fall to her knees again when a wooden pole flew at her head to knock her unconscious. Instead of standing again, Astoria crawled towards the flag, rolling to her left to dodge the knives thrown at her. She continued to move in a zigzag as more things were thrown at her, all Muggle items, until she finally, _finally_ reached the flag, grasping it with her hands and beginning to pull it out.

That was when some of the powder was set free from its home beneath the wooden pole, escaping into the air.

“Ah crud,” Astoria muttered as she breathed the powder in, unable to hold her breath after enough. The world spun around her, and she realized Harry, Ginny, and Tracey had known someone would get to the flag, so they had made _that_ the trap, placing a powder beneath it that escaped when the flag was lifted so that the person would fall asleep, dropping the flag and leaving it in its place.

When Hannah and Neville heard the thump that was Astoria falling asleep, they opened the door with the spell Harry had shown them, entering to clean up the weapons and pull Astoria out, placing her in an empty room nearby before going back to their posts.

Out on the grounds, Draco had taken out Justin and hit Hermione enough times that Blaise could take her out, but Draco was Stunned, leaving Blaise to deal with Padma while Daphne and Luna began to fire at one another, chipping at the castle around them.

In Astoria’s castle, Maya and Terry had met up with Harry, Tracey, and Ginny not far from the flag room. The pair told the trio that Euan, Graham, and Natalie had been in the tunnels and had fallen to their traps, meaning the only two not seen were Astoria and Theo. Harry suggested that Theo was keeping watch on the flag while Astoria tried to get theirs, and no one disagreed, so they prepared to face Theo and whatever traps might be there.

Instead of traps, however, Theo was playing solitaire with some self-shuffling cards, his wand next to the game in front of him and the flag behind him.

“You’re playing solitaire?” Harry asked Theo as he glanced up, and Theo nodded with a grin.

“I knew once I heard the plan that we would lose, so why not keep busy while I waited for someone to come take the flag and end our torment?” Theo questioned with a shrug. “Astoria and Hermione had a good plan, but they weren’t thinking about how good the traps you three put up can be. They were thinking our team could get through them, but I’ve seen you plan some of your traps and helped you set up or prepare enough of them to know that, if you put a trap somewhere, the chances of getting through are very slim, not when you’re putting them up to keep people out of somewhere. We lost the minute they underestimated you.”

“Wow, Theo,” Tracey muttered while shaking her head, walking forward to give him a quick kiss and hug him, glancing at his game and moving a card for him, smiling innocently at his mock-glare. Harry only shook his head at the scene while he moved to pull the flag from its place, shouldering it easily.

“Well, we’d best get out of here,” he told the others. “You want to join us, Theo?”

“Why not? I’m bored anyway.” Theo packed up his cards, shoving them into his pocket, and followed the group out of the castle, where they found Luna unconscious with rubble on the ground beneath her tower. Padma was healing herself, surrounded by four others, all Stunned, Daphne’s wand trained on her from the tower above.

“Theo, why didn’t you stop them?” Padma called when she looked up and saw them.

“Because we obviously lost,” he returned, rolling his eyes.

“We found him playing Solitaire up there,” Terry informed her, and Padma just hit her palm to her forehead, sliding it down her face as she groaned.

“I _told_ Astoria and Hermione that he had something to say and that they should listen, but they ignored both of us,” she grumbled while joining the group as they walked towards Harry’s castle to place the flag next to their own, which would mark the end of the game.

“At least it gives us someone to blame, and if they deny it, they’re lying,” Theo told her cheerfully, and Padma just shook her head in amusement.

“Come on, let’s just end this game already,” Harry said, leading the way to the castle.

…

_Bradley: Harry, you need to come to the study room! We finished the communicators!_

_Harry: I’ll be right there._

…

Harry held up one of the communicators that had been built, looking it over closely. The notes had been triple checked by everyone who understood them before Harry had given the okay for the researchers to finally place the spells on them. What he held in his hand was one of the ten completed communicators, ready to be tested.

“Well, it looks like it should, and the spells are all on it right,” Harry commented as he poke the thing with his wand so that he could see the various spells. “If all goes to plan, this should work. Shall we test it?”

“Let’s,” Bradley agreed quickly, looking very excited as he grabbed his own. “I’ll stay here, and you go out into the Den, okay?”

“Sure,” Harry replied, amused but willing to go along with it, understanding that Bradley had been working on this for months now and couldn’t wait to see it in action. He left the study room, carefully placing the ear piece into his ear and the little circle to his throat, feeling them mold to him as he walked. When he arrived in the Den, Harry went and found Draco and Blaise playing Gobstones in a corner of the room, sitting down to watch them.

“ _Harry, can you hear me?_ ” Bradley’s voice asked in his ear, and Harry grinned while thinking of Bradley in his mind while he replied.

“Loud and clear, Bradley. It works.”

“ _Yes!!! It works, you guys!_ ” he heard Bradley yell, and Harry winced at the volume, ignoring the confused looks Draco and Blaise were giving him.

“Oi, Bradley, don’t think of communicating to me when you yell next time, please,” Harry requested, and he received a soft “ _Sorry_ ” in his ear in reply. Not thinking of communicating with Bradley anymore, Harry told Blaise and Draco, “We’re testing the communicators. They work.” Harry showed them what was in his ear, and their eyes widened in shock.

“They’re _finished_?” Draco asked. “And they _work_? Awesome! This is really going to help if there’s a battle.”

“Yes, it is, but there are some things we still need to figure out,” Harry admitted with a sigh. “We haven’t figured out how to make them invisible yet, and we need to build at least five hundred of them, if not even more. Still, the hardest parts are done.”

“That’s great,” Blaise told him with a smile. “I’m glad we’ve got that worked out, now.”

“ _Harry, can you come back so we can talk_?” Bradley asked.

“Sure, Bradley, I’ll be right there,” Harry replied. “Sorry, guys, but I’ve been recalled to the study room. I’ll see you later.”

Harry stood and headed back to the room, knowing they would want to check on the communicator before having him walk around the castle to make sure it worked long distance. Still, it would be worth it if this saved lives during an attack on Hogwarts. Now if only he could figure out a spell to turn them invisible and possibly attach the cord to a person’s neck…

…

“So we have the communicators basically done, but we still need a couple more spells?” Tracey asked. “That’s a pain, but at least we know the communicators work. I guess adding in Runes and Arithmancy really did help, eh?”

“Yeah, it did, but we’ve still got those problems to figure out,” Harry sighed. “I swear I’ve seen spells that could do those things, but I can’t remember where!”

“Harry, the journal!” Ginny suddenly exclaimed as Harry was hitting his head lightly, hoping to remember. He looked up at her in confusion.

“What journal, Gin?” he asked. They had already gone through all of the journals he had.

“ _Salazar’s_ ,” Ginny hissed, and Harry’s eyes widened.

“Why didn’t I think of that?” he groaned, hitting himself with the charms book that was sitting in his lap before grabbing his bag and searching through it for the journal he rarely ever used: Salazar Slytherin’s. “Now I remember… those spells were in here!”

Harry pulled out the Journal and began flipping through it very quickly. In the middle of the book, he found the spell that turned Sebae invisible and spotted the modified version of it that turned objects and humans invisible. With that spell and the proper delay put on it so that it only activated when the communicator was hooked up to someone’s magical core, which meant in their ear… Yes, that spell could work.

Another few pages, and Harry found the spell that temporarily attached things to one another, and as with the other spell, the proper spell placed on the communicator could make it so that it only activated when placed in a person’s ear so that it attached to their neck. It was brilliant.

Harry sighed in relief and flipped a few more pages, coming to the final one, and he blinked as he was reminded of a spell he had used a while back on his throwing knives to make them return to their sheaths. That could be handy…

“I’ve got the spells we need, but we’ll have to figure out a delay or something so that they only activate when the communicator is in an ear, just like the other spells,” Harry announced. “That shouldn’t be too hard, since it probably just means modifying the spells already on the communicators slightly, which won’t take long.” Harry closed the journal and put it away. “We also should think about special communicators for animals in case we need to use our Animagus forms. We should make them mental rather than verbal or something. Use Legilimency to make them work. _By the way, we should go visit Sebae soon. We’ve been so busy since Christmas that she’s probably lonely,_ ” Harry added in Parseltongue to Ginny at the end.

“ _True_ ,” Ginny admitted. “ _We don’t go see her as often as we should these days, which is probably why she’s always so talkative when we do go see her. Let’s go this weekend._ ” Harry nodded in agreement.

“Harry, what journal was that?” Tracey asked. “I don’t think I’ve seen it before.”

“Oh, I found it in my actual Family Vault this summer, and I wanted to keep it to myself because the spells in it are only for Potters,” Harry made up on the spot. “Ginny found me reading it and asked what it was. She hasn’t read it, but I guess she figured I had forgotten about it in my search for the spells.” Ginny nodded, pretending none of this was new to her.

“Ah, okay,” Tracey said in understanding, nodding.

Oh how Harry hated to lie to her, but it was necessary. If she found out that they still went to visit the Chamber… well, Harry and Ginny were keeping Sebae quiet because who knew who might overhear that conversation. The only way they ever mentioned her was in Parseltongue, and Tracey wasn’t a Parselmouth, so she still didn’t know. If she found out what the journal really was, they would have to explain everything, and that was one thing they knew they couldn’t do, not yet.

Sometimes, having secrets stunk.


	40. Chapter Forty

“What are we doing here?” Ron asked, and Harry glanced at the strategists, a group of about twenty students plus Ron, mostly from Slytherin and Ravenclaw, but a couple from Gryffindor and Hufflepuff as well.

“Welcome to the room that you’ll be using when Voldemort attacks,” Harry told them, opening a door and gesturing inside. “This room will become the main room when an attack happens, which is why it’s so large, but go on and look around.”

Harry glanced around as the strategists began exploring their new room to plan in. It was a room as large as the normal main room, with a small area in one of the corners for practicing in. Any of the dragonhide armor not kept with the older years was near there, as well the spare weapons brought from Gringotts. However, the main part of the room was most definitely the other side of it.

A large table sat in the middle of that half of the room, a model of Hogwarts in the middle, able to become translucent so they could use it to plan strategies. Lying out in front of each chair — there were at least four dozen — was a Marauders Map Harry, Ginny, and Tracey had been working on earlier in the year. Along the walls were larger maps that covered each floor as well as the ones that were the zoomed-in versions just below each full floor map. A cupboard off to the side held all of the completed communicators made so far, which numbered over two hundred already.

“So, what do you think?” Harry asked, gesturing around the room. “Will this do as a base to tell the fighters what’s going on in the battle using the communicators?”

“Oh, most definitely,” Ron called from the Map he was studying. “However, we’ll need to practice with the communicators before the actual battle so everyone adjusts to the idea.”

“Once we have enough — that will take about two weeks — we plan to run through a mock-invasion with you lot in a room identical to this one except in the fake Hogwarts so that we all get used to the communicators,” Harry promised. “Now, while you enjoy the room and get used to it, I’ve got practice to go to. I’m training in my practice robes this time, rather than my regular training clothes.”

Harry gestured down at the Slytherin robes that covered his dragonhide armor. The robes had some protection spells on them, and training in them gave everyone the idea of how it would feel to fight in robes if Voldemort attacked very suddenly, so everyone had to do it at least once a week, despite the fact that no one really enjoyed doing it; Muggle clothes were much easier to move in.

“Oh, enjoy,” Bradley told him, smirking slightly, obviously guessing his thought.

“You, too,” Harry returned with a nod before leaving the room to those who would obviously enjoy it quite a bit until the actual battle that they knew was coming.

…

Severus Snape sighed internally at the fact that he was being forced to sit through yet another of these annoying Order meetings when he could be trying to keep on top of his grading or even just resting in his rooms. However, Albus Dumbledore had called a meeting, and at the meeting he had to be.

“Voldemort has been much quieter this year than last year,” the Headmaster began. “He’s conserving his forces, slowing his attacks down and thinking them through so that they won’t get captured as easily. From what Severus had reported, Voldemort is preparing for a large-scale attack sometime in the future, most likely sometime in the next two months.”

“Do we know where he’s going to attack?” Arthur Weasley questioned, looking both worried and determined.

“One of the most likely targets is Hogwarts,” Severus informed the Order in his soft voice, watching as the adults all froze in fear as they realized the Dark Lord would be attacking the children of their world, the next generation. Of course, Mrs. Weasley came out of her stupor the quickest, with her overprotectiveness of her children. Severus felt her worries and fears were of no use, not with what he had observed about her children, but Severus kept his opinion to himself.

“Albus, the children are there, _my_ children are there!” she cried. “You cannot let this happen! He can’t be allowed to hurt the children!”

“And I will do everything in my power to make certain he does not, Molly,” Albus told her calmly, his voice soft to sooth her. “The protections around Hogwarts are as strong as the professors and I can make them at this time, and we have others in place that can protect the students should Lord Voldemort attack. We will not let the students be harmed.”

Severus had to commend the Headmaster on his ability to calm the redhead down because she sat down, though she now looked worried, and Severus had a feeling the two Weasley children still in school would be receiving letters from their mother soon.

“Albus, the raids by Voldemort’s forces have been very deadly because the Aurors have no idea when they’ll come, and they happen very randomly,” Kingsley reported. “No Aurors have been lost, but no Death Eaters have been caught in a while either. His numbers grow without restraint due to this.”

“We will just have to be as prepared as we can be,” Albus sighed, and Severus rolled his eyes but knew it was true.

There really wasn’t much more they could do, not when they didn’t know the Dark Lord’s plan.

…

_April 2nd, the day after the twins’ birthday_ , Sirius reflected as he walked into Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. What these two had accomplished still impressed Sirius every time he saw proof of it, and today was no exception.

“Padfoot, our old friend!” one of the twins called from behind the counter, jumping over it to sling an arm around Sirius’ shoulders.

“What do we owe this outstanding surprise to?” the other twin asked as he popped his head out of the door that led to the back.

“A mutual friend gave me an idea that has now become a joint birthday gift to you, though it is a day late,” Sirius informed them as they led him into the back.

“And what fabulous gift would this be, Padfoot?” the twin who still had an arm around Sirius questioned.

“Why, it would be my assistance on those side projects you’ve been working on for the past year or two,” Sirius exclaimed quietly, throwing the twin’s arm off of him in the process. “You both get to work with the magnificent Padfoot for the next two weeks!”

The twins gaped at him, but Sirius let them, knowing they would get over it quickly and begin talking supplies for the HPs as well as new ideas. This would give Sirius a chance to do something he loved, he would get to work with some very intelligent pranksters. He could think of new pranks like he hadn’t been able to in years, and it would get Harry more of the supplies he needed just to be safe. It was an all-around good idea.

Now that the twins were over their shock, they would get to have some fun.

…

Amelia stood at the entrance to the Auror Training Area, watching as the Aurors were forced to run an obstacle course that included getting assaulted by both magic and non-magic attacks. By this point, Amelia was actually comparing the instinct to dodge of these Aurors to that of the teens who lived in Marauder Manor. The way they seemed to sense the attack coming and move accordingly, even when it was coming from directly behind them, was astounding to see, but it helped Amelia feel as if these men and women might actually make it through the war.

It was the middle of April. Attacks were increasing again, at least slightly, and Aurors were either at home resting, here training, in the office waiting for the call for backup, or out patrolling the Wizarding World. Two or three Death Eaters had been captured in the recent raids, but it wasn’t enough. Those attacks just proved that Voldemort had at least three hundred followers at his command, and if they attacked Hogwarts, which truly did seem to be the plan, then Harry had better be correct that the Hogwarts Protectors could handle it.

Yes, Amelia had faith in those teenagers, but children against hundreds of adult wizards? It was going to be a bloodbath in the end, though on which side Amelia didn’t know. Perhaps the fact that many of the students at Hogwarts were actually the children of those Death Eaters would make a difference; Amelia didn’t know for sure, but she had to hope.

Soon, she and Harry would be having a talk about how the Ministry would react to an attack on Hogwarts, and he would be trying to convince her to have the Aurors as backup, just in case. Amelia still hadn’t decided how she would react to that conversation, but she was both for and against the idea, seeing both sides of it, so she would let Harry talk and make her decision then.

For now, however, she watched the Aurors train and prove that this new training program really did help them in a fight. It gave hope to those who saw such competent Aurors, even to Amelia.

…

April 21, 1998 became a very important day to many people for one reason: Teddy Remus Lupin was born.

Remus received the call in the middle of the day, Harry knew, and his father’s old friend had requested at least Harry and Tracey accompany him to Tonks to see the birth of his son. Professor Dumbledore couldn’t argue with it because he knew that Harry and Tracey were close friends of both, due to their living with Sirius. They had then Flooed via Remus’ private fireplace to St. Mungo’s, where they were led to the maternity ward.

After that, Remus joined Tonks and Andromeda while Harry and Tracey sat outside with Sirius, Ted Tonks, Daniel, and Samantha. Harry and Tracey had brought their work and decks of cards with them, so they conjured two floating desks to do their homework for a little while before connecting them to build a castle of cards together while Sirius tried to distract them or pull a card out of it. They finally managed to build the castle after twenty minutes of effort and went back to their homework, actually finishing it while they waited.

Finally, Remus entered the waiting room with a blue blanket in his arms and a proud smile on his face as he looked down at his newborn son. Everyone stood up quickly, surrounding them to take a look.

“Teddy Remus Lupin,” Remus informed them softly, startling Ted, who looked honored to have his grandson named after him.

Teddy had very little hair, but it was all black. He was asleep, but Harry was more curious at the sight of his hair. Harry had an odd feeling that Teddy would be a Metamorphmagus just as his mother was, most likely due to the slight lightening of Teddy’s hair even as Harry watched. It was so slight that one had to be watching for it, but Harry could see it.

“He’s beautiful, Remus,” Harry whispered, knowing the werewolf would hear him.

“Yes, and Tonks and I would like you to be his godfather, Harry,” Remus told him. Harry’s head jerked up to look at Remus. Him, godfather? He was seventeen and the main target of Voldemort, and they wanted him to be the godfather of their son?

“Remus, I — I…” Harry trailed off, shaking his head, unable to reply.

“There’s no one better,” Tonks called from the room behind Remus, where the door was still open. “We want no one else.”

“We really don’t, Harry, so please, accept,” Remus said softly. “You’ll look after him like he’s your own if anything happens to us, and you’ll spoil him rotten if nothing does.”

Harry looked down at little Teddy, and he found he couldn’t say no, not to Remus and not to Tonks. “Of course I accept,” he stated, smiling up at Remus.

“Thank you,” Remus whispered, before holding out Teddy for Harry to hold, placing him gently in Harry’s arms.

Harry smiled down at his godson as he rocked him, unable to say another word.

…

“He’s so cute!” Lavender Brown exclaimed as students surrounded Harry and Tracey in turns the next morning at breakfast, where they were showing their friends pictures of Teddy. The pictures were passed around to the entire school before making it back, and most of the girls found Teddy to be cute while the boys were hiding their reactions to the sight, not wanting to seem weak.

“He really is,” Tracey agreed, smiling gently. “When he finally woke up again, he looked at all of us before turning to Harry and holding out his arms for him. It was the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Harry blushed as many students looked at him in surprise, Ginny looking very amused next to him. Harry knew he needed to get revenge on her for this, so he leaned in close to whisper in her ear.

“Remus and Tonks said to tell you they’d like you to be godmother,” he informed her so softly that no one else could hear what he said, only see the shocked look on her face when it hit her. Now it was Harry’s turn to look amused.

“Really?” she questioned, and Harry nodded very seriously. Remus had cornered him after Harry had passed Teddy onto Ted, telling him to let Ginny know sometime that morning. “Well, then, I guess we’re both going to be spoiling that kid rotten, eh?”

Harry just laughed lightly while shaking his head, amused.

…

As April passed into May and Remus returned to Hogwarts, a shadow seemed to form over the shadow. Students laughed a bit less, everyone was more subdued, school work was taken just a little bit more seriously, and whispers filled the corridors of Voldemort coming soon. There was just no other way to describe the feelings of darkness that were beginning to fill them, to explain why some shuddered at random moments when it was perfectly warm. Some would have said it was an irrational fear if they hadn’t known what every resident of Hogwarts did: Lord Voldemort was coming, and they knew it would be soon.

…

Harry’s nose was in his Transfiguration book, studying some of the laws and theories, when the mirror went off, vibrating against his side. With a sigh, Harry placed a scrap sheet of parchment into his textbook and closed it, placing it aside as he pulled the mirror from its case.

“Harry,” Amelia greeted when he answered.

“Amelia,” Harry returned with a nod, already knowing what this was about.

“You’ve mentioned keeping the Aurors as backup when Hogwarts is attacked,” Amelia began. “I want to know why.” Harry sighed and used his wand to pull up Privacy Charms, settling back into his pillows to make himself comfortable, a spell allowing the mirror to float in front of him.

“We both know that the Hogwarts Protectors are here, and no one really knows about us,” Harry stated, and Amelia nodded in agreement. “This will give us the edge to fight at least one round, if not two, without too many casualties, we hope. If we can manage that or even more, wouldn’t it be better if the Aurors were fresh to take over from us, or to protect the school, or to help with the cleanup, or even to capture any fleeing Death Eaters? If the Aurors fight the entire battle with us and the Order, who will be able to protect the rest of Magical Britain and to be sure all the Death Eaters don’t get away? We need them as backup to be sure chaos doesn’t overcome everything outside of Hogwarts.”

“You really believe you’ll be able to fight off the Death Eaters without any Aurors except those in the Order?” Amelia asked, looking skeptical, but not completely against the idea of no Aurors right away.

“Realistically? I believe we’ll be able to fight them for at least a few hours, but there will be a time when we’ll falter, and that’s when the Aurors will be needed,” Harry sighed. “I would love to be able to say we’ll cover Hogwarts completely, but we’re just teenagers, even those of us that are of age. This is going to be a hard battle when it comes, and we students will feel it no matter what part we have in the fight. In the end, however, everyone is determined to fight, and I’m not going to try very hard to stop them, not after all the work they’ve put into this. All I can hope is that we’ll be there to help them through the aftermath.”

“So you’re basically saying you believe the Aurors will be needed either near the end of the battle or during the aftermath, and by ordering them to stay out of the fight, I’ll actually be helping because then the Aurors will be fresh and ready to do what’s needed?” Amelia clarified, and Harry nodded slowly, still feeling saddened by the knowledge that the students of Hogwarts would never be the same after this. Now, however, Harry had another reason to fight, another reason to live beyond the ones he already had: Teddy. He wanted to win this so Teddy could live life in a peaceful world, not one full of war and pain.

“Of course, expect many of the Second Force to disappear when the news comes, because I have a feeling not even I could keep those who have pendants away,” Harry warned, and Amelia smiled slightly, obviously agreeing and also amused by the thought.

“I’ll agree with this plan, but you have to promise to call for the Aurors if you feel it’s become too much for you,” Amelia ordered, and Harry nodded, but Amelia just waited.

“Yes, Amelia, I promise to call for backup if we truly need it,” Harry swore. “I won’t be a Gryffindor when it comes to the lives of these students. If they’re going to die, I’ll swallow my male pride and call for help.”

“Good,” Amelia told him, amusement obvious in her tone. She smiled as she nodded sharply. “I’ll leave you to your studying, then.”

Harry groaned while she laughed, both putting the mirrors away, leaving Harry to continue his revising for the NEWTs that were coming up in less than a month, now.

…

“Pepper-Up Potions?” Harry repeated aloud, looking at Demelza in shock and a bit of awe. “Why didn’t we think of that? Thanks for the idea, Demelza. We’ll get people on it right away. In fact, I’ll make a few cauldrons myself, since it’s such an easy potion… Would be a nice way to relax…”

Harry walked off to find some of his classmates from Potions, knowing he was leaving behind an amused Demelza.

…

“So… Much… Revision…” Theo groaned as he let his head fall on top of his Arithmancy text. “My head hurts!”

“That’s probably because you just slammed it into your book, which is sitting on top of a heavy, strong, wooden table,” Harry informed him brightly, just to annoy him.

“Oh, shut it, Harry,” Theo stated, still not lifting his head up. “I meant it hurts from all the studying. Can’t we take a break?”

“Theo, our exams are in two weeks! We don’t have the time to take breaks,” Hermione admonished him, Harry and the others smirking in amusement.

“Actually, Theo, if you want to come, I’ve got to go convince Remus that he’ll be leaving Hogwarts to collect the others if Voldemort comes, even if it means missing the beginning of the fight,” Harry began conversationally. “Want to join me?”

“No thanks,” Theo exclaimed, sitting up quickly. “I’d rather study.”

“Suit yourself,” Harry told him with a shrug, standing and stretching. “I’ll be back in a bit, Hermione, so don’t tell me off. You know this has to be done soon, before Tom comes to play.”

Hermione huffed but returned to her books, leaving their friends amused as Harry left to go to Remus’ office. When he arrived there, he knocked once and just went right in, knowing Remus wouldn’t care as he had done it off and on throughout the entire school year.

“Ah, Harry, I’ve been expecting you,” Remus said as he looked up from the papers he was grading. “Come in, take a seat. I was just making some tea.”

“You’ve been waiting for me to come and talk to you about this, haven’t you?” Harry asked, shaking his head at the thought. “Just like Amelia, you know what I want, and you want to hear my reasons, right?”

“Oh, no, I’ve already decided your idea is a sound one,” Remus admitted, and Harry blinked in surprise. “By my going to the Manor, I can collect any supplies that might be there and let Amelia know and find out where the Aurors are waiting so we know where to send the signal for backup. In the meantime, I can also keep Sirius from getting reckless and running straight to his death by letting him Portkey where Voldemort is because he won’t know while I will. Overall, it’s a sound plan.”

Harry breathed a sigh of relief. “I’m glad you agree, because trying to convince you would have been a pain in the arse.”

“Language, Harry, and yes, it is a good thing, isn’t it?” Remus said with a chuckle. “Now, let’s have some tea while you tell me about what you’ve been studying so that we’re sure it’s solidly in your mind.”

Shaking his head and smiling in amusement, Harry began to talk with Remus about various parts of all his classes, enjoying the talk to calm down while also studying so Hermione couldn’t complain.

…

Harry dodged to the side as a flash of green flew by him, a Stunner that acted as the Killing Curse in these simulations of a Death Eater attack. He fired his own Stunner, this one red, and watched as the Death Eater fell, leaving another in his place, the fight continuing. Harry blocked a spell with his sword and fired off a Cutting Curse in the process, ducking down to dodge the spell from his right as he spun to face the new opponent, his old one hitting the ground.

Just as always, Harry was almost on autopilot: duck, dodge, attack, slash, block, spell, heal — now do it again. He just found himself moving with the Death Eaters, almost like the fight was some odd dance everyone fighting knew the moves to. It wasn’t hard to lose himself in the movements, listening as Bradley announced through the communicator in his ear that the giants were taken care of and there was already fewer than half the number of Death Eaters left than when they began.

He felt someone’s back hit his own, and Harry continued to fight, shielding and reflecting spells rather than ducking or dodging now that he had someone to protect and someone to protect him. They spun around together, switching opponents with ease when they needed to, and Harry didn’t even know who he or she was, just knowing that they moved together like the training had prepared all of the fighters to do as best it could.

When they rolled away from one another at a call from someone else, Harry didn’t even think to look back to see who it was, just kept moving in the crazy haze that was the mock-invasion.

Suddenly, everything disappeared around him, marking the end of the practice. Everyone was panting, covered in sweat, dehydrated, but pleased with how it had gone. Water was passed out, towels used to clean up, wounds healed, and people sat down to rest. Harry, however, moved towards his friends near the front, knowing he had to make the announcement today as tomorrow was the first day of two weeks of exams for everyone.

“Okay, you lot!” he called, silencing the room with just those three words as all heads turned to him. “I know the next two weeks are exams, but everyone must find the time to come here and at least spend half-an-hour doing something, even if it’s just a spar with another person or one of the training dummies. Voldemort could attack any day now, and he won’t give you a chance to practice before the fight begins. Otherwise, I wish everyone good luck on your exams; I hope you studied. Now, I’m going to go shower and get back to those bloody books that all of us are completely, utterly sick of by now.” Everyone laughed as the tension eased and people began chatting again or leaving the room.

“Nice way to break the tension at the end,” Draco muttered as they left the Room of Requirement, knowing final revision for NEWTs awaited them after their showers.

“Yeah, well, I had to try, right?” Harry replied before falling silent, part of his mind on the exams tomorrow and the other part on what would happen when Voldemort attacked.

…

NEWTs began as they always did every year for Harry and his friends. Charms started them off on Monday with the theoretical that called upon seven years of knowledge rather than five like OWLs had done, followed by the practical, which was quite a bit more extensive than OWLs had been and even included some of the things Professor Lupin had been teaching them in his Defense class.

Transfiguration’s written portion on Tuesday was also more extensive than OWLs had been, but all of them found there were a lot more theories and laws on that exams than Charms had, so they were fortunate to have made sure to memorize as many as they could. The practical was quite fun as they had to transfigure things into various animals, ending with one of their choice, so everyone created his or her Animagus form just for the heck of it, letting them play with one another as they moved onto conjuring things at various levels.

Of course, when the Defense NEWT came along on Wednesday, everyone finished the written exam so quickly that they all got to leave early, shocking the proctors. When the practical portion began, the students almost wished they could just duel one another to show off their Defense ability, but instead they had to perform various spells and counters on testing dummies that didn’t even move, though the entire year made sure to show off their Patronuses just because they could.

Thursday morning, many of the seventh years slept in a bit while others went to the Arithmancy written portion, and in the afternoon many others trained as most of the year took their Runes exam, which was purely theoretical. Both were easy and allowed for training time in the Room of Requirement.

For many, Friday was a free day to relax, train, and perhaps study a bit for next week as those “few brave souls who took Potions after OWLs” sat their written portions before being asked to brew a Draught of Life within a four hour timeframe without instructions. To those who heard what the assignment was after it was over, that sounded like a nightmare to brew, but everyone in the class was hiding smirks of amusement as Professor Snape had been forcing them to brew without instructions all year long, meaning they had to find and memorize the potion they were going to be brewing ahead of time, so this had been very easy.

The first week of NEWTs were done for Harry and friends, and they were just hoping to get the second week out of the way. If only they had known…

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it, the big one, the one you’ve all been waiting for — the next chapter begins Voldemort’s invasion. It's a multi-chapter battle, so buckle up, it's going to be an emotional, chaotic ride.


	41. Chapter Forty-One

Harry couldn’t explain it, but when he woke up on June 6th, 1998, he just  _knew_ that something was going to happen. It was a Saturday, so most students were still asleep, which was reasonable given the fact that it was only seven in the morning. Still, Harry knew that by eight-thirty, everyone would be awake.

The day went normally with Harry helping everyone train as best he could despite the exams many were obviously thinking about, but today he worked them without pushing them past their limits. In fact, he let each group who came to train go early to study, despite their wanting to stay longer when they realized what he was doing. No one understood why, not even him, but he just had a feeling that everyone was going to need their energy that day.

It was eight in the evening, and most were done with dinner and in their Common Rooms or The Den, many studying, when it happened: a single burst of heat ran through every single Journal in the entire school, no matter what the age or color.

There was only one thought going through everyone’s mind at that moment: Lord Voldemort was attacking.

…

Instead of the panic that Harry knew the teachers were expecting when a loud bell went off around the school, every single student got up and quickly rushed back to dorms.

In the Slytherin dorms, Harry watched as each year’s leader checked every boy and girl in their year, checking to be sure they had everything they would need. After they were done, each group presented themselves to Harry, who checked each student over a second time before nodding.

Once everyone was ready, all of Slytherin House made its way to the Room of Requirement, which was already set up for the battle that they all knew would be starting within the next few hours.

The large Maps hung all around the room. Strategists stood at different tables, all with Maps on them that could be controlled to show different parts of the school zoomed in so that they could tell people where to go.

In other areas of the room, people were pulling out swords and daggers, practicing a little to be sure they were ready. A few were even working on wand movements for some of their best battle spells. All in all, it was obvious that everyone was nervous.

“Okay!” Harry called out loudly as he clapped his hands together, standing on a slightly elevated area of the room. Behind him, everyone else with a colored Journal stood in a semicircle while the other leaders stood at his sides. Around the room, everyone turned to face him, weapons away and determined looks on their faces to hide the fear.

“We all know that Lord Voldemort is at the gates of our school,” he stated to the silent room. He pointed to the Maps on the walls where the black dots at the gates were clearly visible among the orange dots that represented creatures. The black skull of Voldemort stood out against them all.

“We also know that Dumbledore and his Order of the Phoenix are preparing along with the teachers and other people ready to fight as we speak,” he added as everyone looked at the Great Hall where a large group of silver and purple dots were converging, silver for Order members and purple for everyone else, a silver star in the middle of them all for Dumbledore.

“Neither side knows of us!” he continued sharply, making everyone turn back to him. “The teachers believe we’re in our Common Rooms, scared out of our minds, and Voldemort and his Death Eaters believe we’ll stay out of the way for the same reasons.

“We, on the other hand, know that we’re not going to do anything of the sort! For three years the Hogwarts Protectors have existed to train and prepare for one thing: Voldemort coming to Hogwarts. Now that he’s here, are we going to give in and let him win without us giving him a hell of a fight?”

“NO!” everyone yelled at the top of their lungs, obviously furious at the idea of it.

“Good! Now, I know what I’m about to say is going to upset many of you, but we all know that what I’m about to say is the harsh truth, and we all need to listen to it.”

Harry looked around at the faces in front of him. The seventh years had no fear, only determination showing on their faces; they knew what was coming. Sixth and fifth years were also ready for battle, despite their fear. Looking at the fourth years, Harry knew they were ready, but it would be hard for them. Unfortunately and fortunately all at once, the first through third years weren’t truly prepared for a full-out battle, no matter how much they felt they were.

Right then, the doors to the Room opened, and in came a group of graduated students that Harry had seen coming on the Map. Among them were Fred and George Weasley, who immediately took their places among the colored Journals, the old Gryffindor Quidditch Team, and the others who had been in the Hogwarts Protectors before leaving school. Any of those who had once been on a Quidditch team had brooms, which Harry knew meant they were willing to be part of the aerial force.

“First years, you will be staying in here to help the strategists give out orders and make plans,” Harry stated, and while most looked a bit disappointed, Harry could see the relief in their bodies as none of them argued against him. “Second and third years will be the ones setting off the traps around the school, in the Great Hall, and the Gryffindor third years will be outside setting off those traps as well.” Both years just nodded, determined to help while obviously relieved they were being kept from the real fighting, though they hid it well.

“Aerial force will be joined by anyone who just entered with a broom,” Harry continued. “Remember, Ron Weasley is your leader, and you will listen to his orders as he’s the best strategist we have! You all know what is at stake, so do not let pride get to your heads; listen to him! I don’t care if you don’t think the plan will work because he’s in charge! Your lives are on the line, and only those who have so many plans flying through their heads that they can merge them together to create a new one in moments will be in charge of a special unit!

“Fred, George, you’re joining the aerial force with your special weapons I know you’ve been putting together,” he then stated, turning to face the twins. “Listen to me and listen well: Your brother is in charge. This is no joke, so anything he says _goes_. Do you both understand me?”

“Yes,” they almost yelled as they stood up straight from the harsh attention, looking more serious than anyone had ever seen them in their lives.

“Fourth years!” Harry then called as he turned around, assured of the twins’ agreement. “You all will be in the Great Hall, protecting it to the best of your ability if the traps don’t stop everyone from going farther than the Entrance Hall. Remember that you may have to go into the Entrance Hall and throughout the school if anything leaves that room, so be prepared for anything.

“The rest of you and my friends with colored Journals here,” Harry finally said, deflating a little at what he was about to say. “We’re all going to be out in the grounds, fighting the Death Eaters and the creatures they brought along head-on. That is where the deaths are most likely to occur, and it is also going to be like nothing any of you has ever experienced, not even in the mock-invasions as the Room can only copy the Death Eaters so well. These people are more experienced and are more used to this.

“What you have that they don’t are a few things: Surprise! No one is going to be expecting us on either side, so we’ll throw everyone off, which should help in the long run. Another is that we’re all much faster than them after all of the training we’ve done. Plus, we have swords and daggers while they only have wands; get in close and do whatever it takes to take them down, even if it means killing to keep the innocent and yourselves alive.

“This is war, everyone,” Harry stated. “Everything is going to be harsh, bloody, and terrifying. Nothing I could have done will have prepared you completely for this, but you all have to think of one thing: You’re doing this to protect Hogwarts, to save loved ones and innocents, to make this world a better place for the future. Give it everything you have, and we’ll win because we have something to fight for!”

Everyone cheered to get rid of the tension in the room as Harry nodded once, sharply. He was proud of the children, young adults, and adults in front of him. No matter what happened during this battle, he knew that he and everyone else in this room would remember everyone as students willing to fight to protect their school and their lives. If they survived this, Harry would be sure that everyone else remembered them like that as well.

“How long?” Tracey asked quietly from behind him, and Harry turned to see that his closest friends were all behind him, closer than before.

“He could attack at any time,” Harry sighed. “All we can do is be prepared for him.”

“Then let’s prepare everyone,” Daphne said, and everyone nodded before going to where they knew they had to be.

Harry stayed where he was for another minute, just surveying the room.

Ron was with the first years and a group of mostly Slytherins and Ravenclaws from the other six years, a few from each year, by the largest Map that was on a table, pointing out things to them while showing them where they were on other Maps, obviously reminding them. Beside him, Padma and Terry were helping out the first years, who hadn’t done this often. Of course, Bradley Martin and Tom Vaisey, a Ravenclaw and a Slytherin leader respectively, were in charge of the Maps while everyone was gone.

Over in a corner where the Nimbuses were kept, Fred and George were making sure everyone had not only their brooms and wands but special pouches of supplies they had created. All of them knew that there would be giants, so the twins had worked out little explosives that made a much larger bang than their size led people to believe, all for the giants. Other creations were to hit the Death Eaters with. Luckily, the whole aerial squad had worked on throwing things from high levels with accuracy, even in the dark.

Ginny and Tracey were the pranksters with the second and third years, going over which traps to use when, where, and how. Plus, they were putting counter-curses and other things to protect their own side on everyone.

Hermione, Theo, Daphne, and Blaise were in a different room, passing Draco small boxes to place on a table. Once they had them all, the five of them went around the room, passing each person a box. Without a second thought, each person opened them, pulled out the object within, and put it on.

Harry took his own and grinned slightly as he saw the final version of their creation. It reminded the Muggle-borns of an ear bud for music or something, but there was a small cord that had a little circle on the end. The ear bud end of the cord went into the ear, where it automatically stuck, taking in the person’s magical core so that no one else could take it out or affect it at all as well as marking it so that messages to that person only got to that person. When the circle was placed on the front of the throat, it seemed to disappear, the cord suddenly attaching to the person’s neck. In truth, all of it was still there, just Disillusioned with the spell Harry had learned in his fourth year from Slytherin’s journal.

Neville, Susan, Justin, Hannah, Graham, Maya, and Natalie were with the fourth through seventh years, placing dragonhide armor on them and charming weapons to always return to their sheaths while being unbreakable, including wands. That last spell had taken a while, but Harry had suddenly remembered to check the journal again and found one. It had been the final spell in the book.

Suddenly, a thought came to Harry, and he jumped down from his spot, rushing to where Ginny and Tracey were just finishing up. Grabbing Ginny’s arm, he pulled her away from everyone else and into a room the Room had just created for them, ignoring all the odd looks he knew he was getting for his odd actions.

“ _What_ is going on, Harry?” Ginny demanded as she wrenched her arm from his hand as he locked the door and put a Privacy Charm on it.

“Sebae!” he exclaimed, and her eyes widened as she realized what the rush was about. “Do you remember all those years ago when I asked Sebae for one thing?”

“You asked her to follow my orders and come to you if Hogwarts was ever attacked because you’d probably be busy,” she said softly, and Harry nodded quickly.

“Ginny, we both practiced the spell to make her invisible on her, and you’re the only hope of us getting her help,” Harry said in a quiet but intense voice, knowing that she understood and agreed completely. “You _need_ to go down there and get her — _fast_!”

Ginny looked up at him, blinked once, and nodded sharply. The tension that had entered Harry’s body as he remembered Sebae rushed out at that, and he pulled Ginny into a tight hug, knowing that Voldemort might attack before she returned. It had already been at least two hours since the warning, and who knew how long it would take her to get to Sebae and back.

“Be careful, Harry, please be careful,” Ginny said quietly as she wrapped her arms around him just as tightly. “I couldn’t bear it if you were gone.”

“I’ll do my best,” he replied, “but you have to be just as careful. If you or Tracey died, let alone both of you…”

Harry didn’t finish the thought, knowing she understood. If he lost either of the two girls who were basically his life, he’d lose himself.

“I love you, Harry,” Ginny said softly, squeezing him a little more before relaxing her grip.

“I love you, too, Ginny,” Harry replied just as softly, letting go of her before giving her a very light kiss.

In under two minutes of entering the little room, the pair left it, returning to the main room looking determined, and Harry knew it was obvious to everyone that neither had been doing anything more than talking.

Of course, the fact that Ginny left the Room almost immediately after their disappearance also said something else had occurred. Not even Tracey knew what was happening when Harry heard a few question her. They all knew better than to ask him.

Once Ginny had left, Harry immersed himself in tactics, listening to Ron as he talked with all the leaders from the older four years, though he was mostly talking to those who would be outside.

It seemed that the plan was to start with pure magic as the Death Eaters would be surprised enough with the appearance of students that keeping the swords and daggers hidden would give them even more of an edge. Only when one was in close enough to cause real damage were they to bring out the dagger, which would cause more chaos. Eventually, when the Death Eaters were truly over their shock enough to fight, everyone would begin using swords on the signal of someone over the earpieces, which would be given when the leaders began reporting back to base that it was time.

All of it made sense to Harry, so he agreed wholeheartedly with the plans. In fact, he was proud of what just “mere students” were able to do.

Finally, he glanced up at a Map, and he saw something he was afraid of: Dementors flying over the grounds.

Casting a Sonorous Charm on himself, Harry yelled, “We have Dementors on the grounds! I repeat: there are Dementors on the grounds! All who are not staying in this room are to report to positions immediately! Those fighters and aerial forces who can conjure a Patronus are to report to the ramparts of the castle and use the charm _immediately_!” Everyone was frozen for a moment, so Harry yelled, “ _NOW!_ ”

That got everyone moving as an organized rush headed to the doors. Strategists organized themselves around the room, earpieces in place as Ron activated them all before leaving the room at the head of the aerial group, brooms in hand. Fighters pulled out wands with hard looks and followed those with brooms. Second and third years had pouches covering their belts except where weapons were invisible to all but those with Journals.

Harry rushed out of the Room, his closest friends around him, with a few of the colored Journal users ahead of them to be in the aerial group. They were all headed to the top of the castle, some in the towers, some flying to areas only reachable by broom, some using windows, and a few using little-known passages to get outside.

Harry’s group was among the ones to use a little-known passage, and they ended up in open air quickly. Unfortunately, it was freezing cold even in June as Dementors slowly glided across the grass, sucking all the warmth and happiness from the air and the fighters.

Putting a finger to his earpiece, Harry said two words as he held his wand steadily at the Dementors, “ _Expecto Patronum_!”

A silver stag burst from his wand, other silver animals joining it all around him as his friends made their own. Tracey’s little cat was right beside two different foxes, a lion on their tails. More and more Patronus Charms joined their group as students all along the front of the castle launched their spells.

Quickly, the Dementors were gone, and the aerial squad was in the air, flying high enough that they were only visible if one knew to look for them. The rest of the fighters were unshrinking brooms from in pockets or pouches and flying down to the ground, replacing shrunken brooms almost immediately.

Moments after putting his _Firebolt_ away, Harry’s wand was in hand and he was standing in front of the entrance to Hogwarts, all of his closest friends still with him. It had been unanimously decided that _they_ would be defending the entrance to their school as they were the best fighters they had while the other seventh years would lead the rest against the Death Eaters farther out.

Of course, that was the moment the Order of the Phoenix decided to finally show their presence, and they were completely shocked to find students waiting for the Death Eaters.

“Harry, what is the meaning of this?” Mrs. Weasley voice demanded, and Harry turned to see a group of maybe thirty adults there, Albus Dumbledore at the back.

“What does it look like we’re doing?” he asked dully. “We’re waiting for the Death Eaters.”

“Mr. Potter, you are a student!” Professor McGonagall exclaimed.

“Yes, and _all_ of us are protecting our school,” he stated, emphasizing the “all” to see who would catch on first, though he knew who it would be.

“‘All’ of you, Mr. Potter?” Professor Dumbledore asked, and Harry knew that they had all pulled one over on him.

“Yes,” Tracey said, also turning around to face the adults, though they were the only two who turned. “Every single student of Hogwarts is prepared to protect her, and we will.”

“ _Harry, you need to get the Order the earpieces and send them on quickly,_ ” Bradley Martin said over the earpiece. “ _The Death Eaters are sending in the giants, and they’re following quickly. They’ll be within striking distance in two minutes at the most._ ”

“Got it,” Harry said aloud, surprising the adults as he nodded. “I’ll get right on it.”

“You’ll get right on what?” one of the Order members asked.

“Who were you talking to?” another added.

“Bradley Martin, a sixth year Ravenclaw,” Harry replied as he reached into a pouch and pulled out as many boxes as he could hold, which Tracey took immediately as he gathered the rest. “He was telling me that we have less than two minutes before the Death Eaters are here, they’ve got the giants coming, and you all each need one of these _now_.”

Harry began tossing the Order members the earpieces, and they all caught the boxes on instinct as Hannah turned around to help them all put them in. No matter how much they argued, Hannah ignored them all and actually began putting them on the members herself. Finally, Dumbledore intervened.

“Harry, what are these things?” he asked, and Harry grinned slightly.

“Communicators,” he replied. “They allow the students watching the battle from inside the castle to tell us where to go, where everyone is, and what’s about to come. Just wear them and listen to advice they give you as they’ve been preparing for this all year.”

Every single Order member was gaping at him, and even Dumbledore looked shocked. It made Harry proud that he had managed to do this to him, but he was worried as they didn’t need a distraction right now.

“ _Guys, they’re only thirty seconds from the seventh years!_ ” Tom Vaisey commented loudly in all of their ears, and Harry smirked as he saw Order members wince and then look shocked.

“Now that you see what they can do, _go get out there and help the fifth, sixth, and seventh years fight Voldemort!_ ” Harry yelled, pointing towards where the students were waiting. “We’ve got the castle completely ready for them, and we’ll take care of the giants. What we need you for is to take out as many Death Eaters as you can, however you can.”

“How long have you all been preparing for this?” Professor McGonagall demanded.

“We’ve been training since Umbridge was here, and we’ve been preparing for an actual huge battle all school year, now _GO!_ ” Harry exclaimed, and finally, Dumbledore did something effective.

“I believe we should trust the students and leave the castle and giants to them,” he said calmly, drawing shocked looks from the Order members. “There are Death Eaters with only students to fight them, so we had best go.”

Dumbledore gestured for everyone to go, but he himself stayed where he was. It was interesting, Harry thought, that the Order followed his orders even if he didn’t do them himself. It was more like a “do what I say, not what I do” than a “follow my lead” thing with the Order.

Once they were all gone, Dumbledore turned to Harry, who was watching the grounds for Death Eaters as lights from spells lit up the sky.

“Mr. Potter, may I ask why you’re putting students in danger?” he asked with a voice that would scare most people, but Harry wasn’t most people.

“Because, _Headmaster_ , Hogwarts is another home to most of us, and we aren’t going to let the Death Eaters take it,” Harry almost snarled, not even looking at the man he had come to respect in everything except how much he felt the need to manipulate. “It didn’t matter to us what you would all think of this as we knew that this school needs the students to fight, so we are. Every single person fighting tonight chose to fight; no one has been forced to do anything.”

“Harry, these are children,” Dumbledore said, obviously becoming agitated, “and children should not be forced to be part of anything like this.”

“Professor, I respect you and honor our alliance after last year, but you _will_ listen to me!” Harry yelled as he turned to face the Headmaster, his friends all looking at him before turning back to the oncoming battle.

“I have not kept a single thing from any of these children, as you call them; not a _one_! I’ve told those that didn’t know the dark truth of what happened in that graveyard three years ago. They all know how Cedric Diggory died just because he was a _spare_ , and that it happened in an instant. Bloody hell, Professor, almost the entire school, especially the Muggle-borns, has been affected by either this war or the first against Voldemort!

“Every single person fighting tonight knows what is at stake. I’ve kept the first years in a hidden room that none will find. The second and third years are inside the castle, waiting for the Death Eaters to enter it so that they have a chance to set off traps to protect their school. The forth years are in the Great Hall now that you’ve left, all of them waiting to see if anyone escapes the traps in the Entrance Hall so that they can keep the Death Eaters from the rest of the school if they can!

“Only the fifth, sixth, and seventh years are out on these grounds except for the younger ones you see here and a few third years from Gryffindor are on the grounds to set off massive traps when the Death Eaters hit them. Every single person on the grounds has dragonhide armor on along with other things not even you will expect, Professor.

“ _DO NOT_ tell me _anything_ about not being careful, Professor, because I have been as careful with their lives as I can while not making anyone feel unused and keeping enough people to fight on the front lines!” Harry finished in a half-snarl half-yell.

Harry didn’t know where that had come from, but he had meant every word of it. Being basically told by Dumbledore that he didn’t care for the lives of the students he had been training for years had hit a massive nerve as it wasn’t true at all.

“Very well, but remember this, Harry: Every student out there is out there because of you,” Dumbledore said gravely before going to join the front lines.

The moment he was gone, Tracey rushed over to Harry, who was shaking in rage and confusion.

“Harry,” she said softly as she hugged him rightly, “nothing that happens here is your fault. You’ve trained everyone to the best of your ability, and you know as well as I do that everyone here chose on their own to fight. Dumbledore is just trying to manipulate you into making the others return to Hogwarts. Be a Slytherin, Harry, not a Gryffindor, right now.”

Harry took a deep breath and then another two before nodding to Tracey and rejoining his friends at the middle of the line they had made. Then, his mind went to the earpiece and thoughts of Dumbledore so that his next words were to him and him alone except for his friends who could hear him.

“Nice try, old man, but these students have worked hard all year if not for three years preparing for this battle, and I’m not taking it away from them if they want to be here,” he snarled quietly, knowing Dumbledore would hear it but wouldn’t be able to respond.

Harry didn’t have to turn to know that his friends were all happy with what he had just said. It was as if he could feel their smiles.

“ _Death Eaters have driven their way forward,_ ” Bradley suddenly said. “ _They’ll be with you all very shortly._ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> True fighting begins next chapter, but I had to set it all up properly, no? Many of my original reviewers came close in their guesses about what the Sorting Hat’s song meant by what had been there in the beginning when they mentioned the Chamber of Secrets, but no one mentioned Sebae specifically. I suspected this would be the case. ;) If you think about it, she was there from the very beginning of Harry being the Chosen Heir. Hope I surprised you.


	42. Chapter Forty-Two

“ _Death Eaters have driven their way forward,_ ” Bradley suddenly said. “ _T_ _hey’ll be with you all very shortly._ ”

Harry knew then that Bradley had spoken to the entire group as everyone tensed and got their wands ready. It was true that they could see the lights getting closer.  
  
Suddenly, a group of wizards in black robes and silver masks appeared in front of them. Behind them, students in black, long-sleeved shirts and pants without masks and with the Hogwarts seal on their front and back chased after them. Harry waved them off, and they raised their arms in acknowledgement before turning back to the rest of the battle, leaving these Death Eaters for Harry and his friends.  
  
Harry began the fight by silently sending out a _Stupefy_ , his Occlumency shields up strong so that it wasn’t expected. Around him, _Stupefy_ and _Expelliarmus_ were well-used by his friends as they all began to move immediately, dodging Cutting Curses and Killing Curses instinctively.  
  
Harry launched a series of five Blasting Hexes at the ground, moving from right to left with each one, sending up pieces of the soil and rock at the Death Eaters. This provided just enough of a distraction for the group to get closer to the Death Eaters. It actually appeared to surprise the Death Eaters as if they were just realizing their opponents were only students.  
  
Once the Death Eaters realized who they were fighting, the spells turned to _Stupefy_ and _Incarcerous_ instead, which was their downfall. Next to Harry, Theo used _Incendio_ to burn wands and Death Eaters without a care in the world for the screams, or so it seemed. Blaise seemed to like the idea and used _Lacarnum Inflamarae_ to send balls of fire at the Death Eaters, setting even more of them on fire.  
  
Neville went a different route and sent Death Eaters flying into the air, making most lose their wands in the process, with a carefully used _Alarte Ascendare_. Hannah used _Aguamenti_ to allow Susan and Justin to hit Death Eaters with Hurling Hexes and Banishing Charms into objects like trees or even the walls of the castle.  
  
Tracey and Harry were taking turns using Blasting Hexes again, Stunning the distracted Death Eaters before snapping every single wand anyone managed to collect and tying up anyone they knocked out.  
  
Graham, Euan, and Natalie were pretending to be the weakest and sneaking around with Astoria to disarm the Death Eaters out of nowhere so that the rest could get them easier. It was their way to work as a team.  
  
Of course, this only worked because more Death Eaters were getting through the front lines and meeting the toughest of the students without realizing they were there. It was actually a very well thought-out plan Ron had made as it made sure all the Death Eaters were already weaker when they got to Harry and his friends.  
  
Thinking of Ron, Harry looked up into the air to see people on brooms throwing the bomb-like objects the twins had made at the massive giants that were now away from the rest of the fighters and unable to help the Death Eaters. It was well done, and Harry smiled a bit as he turned his attention back to the fight just in time to receive a Cutting Curse to the arm.  
  
Crying out in pain, Harry fought his instinct to grab the cut with his other hand as he moved his wand from his right hand to his left and launched his own Cutting Curse at the Death Eater that had hit him, getting the guy right in the stomach in his anger.  
  
Pulling back behind the lines of fighters, Harry pointed his wand at his arm and muttered a healing spell under his breath darkly, upset at letting himself get distracted. Not even bothering to fix his shirt as it would be ruined by the end of battle anyway, Harry checked to be sure there wasn’t a scar before grabbing his wand in his right hand again and jumping right back into the battle.  
  
All around him, his friends kept stepping out of the fight to heal cuts on arms, legs, and Daphne got a cut on her stomach that she healed almost immediately as Blaise took over her fight for her so that she could do it.  
  
Unfortunately, Death Eaters were getting past the group now as there were just too many for them to handle. Luckily, Harry heard sounds of traps and spells going off in the Entrance Hall behind him, so he knew the younger years had it completely covered, leaving him to fight those out front.  
  
The fighting, which had started very close to midnight, had been going on for a long time, nearly an hour by Harry’s reckoning, when someone new joined the line of students beside him. Harry glanced over to see Ginny wielding her wand ferociously at the advancing Death Eaters. Ginny flashed a cheeky smile at him.  
  
“ _Got her_ ,” she hissed before moving on to another opponent, leaving Harry satisfied as he knew the Death Eaters and other creatures would have problems now.  
  
Of course, when Ginny screamed in pain moments later because a Cutting Curse hit her on the side, Harry jumped into the fight to protect her as Tracey rushed over to heal her. Everyone knew a spell there needed someone else to heal it to be sure nothing got missed.  
  
The moment Tracey okayed her, Ginny was back in the fight, but this time she stayed near Harry and Tracey, who were using their knowledge of one another to fight like a well-made machine. Unfortunately, Harry could tell that they had lost the edge, even when they all began using daggers to cut body parts before blasting the Death Eaters away.  
  
“Send out the signal for swords,” he stated, thinking of base so that they all got the message, knowing that they had been waiting for him.  
  
“ _SWORDS!_ ” was called immediately over the earpiece as someone in the aerial squad threw something into the air far away from them that exploded into a purple flare that everyone knew meant swords were needed if they hadn’t been able to hear the earpiece.  
  
All around Harry, his friends reached into pockets with one hand and enlarged swords with a flick of their wands. Harry himself pulled out, not the sword everyone had gotten used to seeing with the emerald in the hilt, but Gryffindor’s Sword, which only Ginny and Tracey had ever seen.  
  
Ignoring the gasps of disbelief, Harry began using his sword to cut wands in half without a second thought. At times, he even cut into people, ignoring the blood running down the metal to flow over his hand.  
  
Screams rang across the grounds of Hogwarts, but this time they weren’t the screams of children and Order members but of Death Eaters. With the addition of swords the Death Eaters weren’t expecting the students to use, Hogwarts was gaining the upper hand more easily.  
  
Right then, a bright green flare shot into the sky from the direction of the gates, and Harry knew that Voldemort was calling for a retreat. That didn’t mean they were getting away without a fight, but it was nice to know Tom Riddle was scared.  
  
Slashing at another Death Eater trying to run away, Harry cut his side and sent him to the ground, destroying the wand without thought. He continued to hack, slash, and stab until there were no more Death Eaters.  
  
Panting, Harry looked around in shock. The fight had been so intense that he hadn’t noticed the piles of unconscious or dead Death Eaters forming along the walls of the school. Most were out cold, but the addition of swords obviously led to more deaths than there had been before as sword slices looked different from Cutting Spell cuts.  
  
“Is everyone okay?” he got out as he tried to catch his breath.  
  
“We’re all alive,” Tracey stated, and that was all Harry had to know.  
  
“Let’s get into the Great Hall,” he said, moving slowly to try not to hurt himself as he moved into the Entrance Hall, his friends falling into step behind him. “Guys, get everyone into the Great Hall, whether they were in the castle or not, even if they need healing. We need to figure out where they are,” he added into the earpiece so that those in the base would retrieve everyone before heading to the Great Hall themselves.  
  
When Harry entered the Great Hall, all of the fourth years along with some second and third years were already there. From the looks of them, Harry knew they had mostly had to set off traps and fought only the few who got through the older students’ lines, which relieved him greatly, even if they were a little disappointed. The less they had to truly fight, the less of their remaining innocence they would lose.  
  
Slowly but surely, Order members and other adults joined the students in the Great Hall until the whole room was full of conversation. One of the main topics was why students were fighting. Finally, when everyone was in the room and looking furious at the idea, Harry and his close friends had had enough.  
  
“ _ENOUGH!_ ” Ginny yelled, her voice echoing throughout the entire room. She had not placed a charm on her voice, yet it silenced everyone. She, Harry, the rest of the colored Journal group, and all the other leaders went and stood in front of the Head Table, glaring at all of the adults in the room who weren’t in the Hogwarts Protectors, even the first year leaders.  
  
“Ginny!” Molly Weasley exclaimed, beginning to move towards her only daughter in shock and fear for her, but Demelza Robins slashed her wand silently, creating a barrier between the group and everyone else in the Hall that no one who tried could cross.  
  
“We’re sick and tired of all of you adults ordering us around as if you actually have a say in what we can and cannot do!” Amanda Wood screamed across the Hall, effectively shutting up anyone who had begun whispering.  
  
“This is our school, and these are _our_ lives!” Michael Boot exclaimed. It seemed the sight of first years telling off adults was something they had never expected.  
  
“Lord Voldemort — Oh it’s just a _name_! — is attacking, and _we_ are doing something about it!” Tammy Boot added.  
  
“Either shut up and fight, or talk and get left behind!” Brian Turpin finished, crossing his arms over his chest at the same moment at the three other first years.  
  
Mutters broke out around the room. Disbelief, anger, and sadness were among the most obvious tones of the adults, the former two most used. This continued until Natalie looked at Graham, who set loose a series of loud bangs around the room, silencing them all again as Natalie stepped forward to speak, Graham only a step behind her, Euan watching on as his close friends spoke to the group.  
  
“You think that someone’s coerced us into doing this,” Natalie stated, her voice normal but heard all across the Hall without effort. “All of you look at us and then turn to Harry and his fellow Slytherins and say that he’s done something to all of us. Well, do you want to know something? _Do you!?_  
  
“Unless you’ve got children here at Hogwarts, have recently been to Hogwarts, or know Hogwarts _at all_ lately, you _do not_ know Hogwarts anymore! All of you look at Slytherin and see dark wizards or potential Dark Lords. We all know that you think Harry is a Dark Lord right now,” she continued, gesturing not only to those at the Head Table but also to those out in the crowd. “Well, guess what? Hogwarts has _changed_ since all of you were students here!  
  
“The Houses have been united by Harry Potter! Even more, every single one of us was trained by him. You all think he forced us to do this, but he offered training, he offered a place in his group to protect the school we all love, and you know what? _We all chose to follow him and train and fight!_ Not a single one of us was forced into this! No matter what you think, we’re human beings, not pawns, not little things you can control, and Harry showed us that he understood by letting _us_ unite the Houses, by letting us choose to help our school, and by making sure _we_ knew everything we needed to, which is more than anyone else has ever done.  
  
“So before you lot decide we’re being controlled or something is wrong with us, look at us as fellow people who are scared but willing to fight to protect what we love!”  
  
Natalie was breathing heavily and Graham had a hand on her shoulder, but both of them were glaring at the adults in the room, all of whom looked as if they had been slapped, even Dumbledore. It would have been amusing to Harry if it all wasn’t serious.  
  
“You’ve all chosen to treat us as innocent little babies,” Harry stated, stepping forward himself and putting an arm around Natalie’s shoulders and the other around Graham’s, who had stepped forward so that they were in a line. “Well, I’ve treated them all as people who can choose.  
  
“There’s something you’ve all always remembered, yet you’ve always forgotten it as well,” Harry continued calmly, showing why he was looked at as a leader. “The Purebloods, the Half-bloods, those who have grown up in the Wizarding World their entire lives, they’ve also grown up with something else: Your pasts. Those of us who have entered this world from the Muggle world without prior knowledge learned from friends, from those who know.  
  
“I believe that, if you ask every single student here, you’ll all find that those family members who died in the first war and changed _you_ , changed your own children.” Harry could almost feel his friends behind him nodding as he watched adults begin to look shocked at the children among them nodding. “As they grew up, they heard about the terrors of the war, and they all saw how it changed families, destroyed them.  
  
“I’m not the only orphan of the first war!” he yelled, shocking most of the adults so they jumped, but not a single Hogwarts Protector was shocked; they were too used to his random yelling.  
  
“My friend Neville here, his parents are still in St. Mungo’s and he was raised by his grandmother. He’s only one person to grow up with other family because of the last war. You all know about my past, yet you never think about how family members who died in the last war affect the next generation just as much as your generation.  
  
“Now that the second war has come, it’s even worse. Tracey Davis, one of the women behind me, someone who is my sister in everything but blood, lost her parents just over a year ago, as you all should know. Everyone around her has watched as she’s fought to get over the loss, but she never will, just as those of us who were close to her parents never will either. Just watching it has changed those who haven’t been affected directly, and that number is shrinking every day.  
  
“Unlike you adults, I’ve recognized this, and I’ve given the students at Hogwarts something to do about it. All of you want vengeance for the dead, and all of you want the world to be safer in the next generation, yet none of you have even thought about the idea that we want it just as much as you do!”  
  
The students were pumping their fists silently; most were nodding. Harry could see just by watching that the adults were slowly realizing that he had done nothing to the so-called children that were the students of Hogwarts. In fact, many had tears in their eyes, and a lot of the adults in the room looked ashamed.  
  
“No matter what you all think, Harry here has done nothing but give us the opportunity we were all asking for,” Tracey said as she moved almost silently forward to stand next to Natalie, who moved so that Tracey was between her and Harry. “My parents understood that we were going to end up fighting in this war despite what they wished, so instead of holding us back and coddling us, they trained my friends and me.  
  
“Ever since the summer after my second year, I’ve trained in magic, Occlumency, martial arts, and sword fighting. Harry gave his closest friends daggers and wand holsters, which was how we started our training. When it came time to learn to use swords, he was the one to provide them because he had so many in his vault that he could provide for every student in the school and still have some left over.”  
  
“Many of you would be surprised to learn which of us standing up here were part of the original training sessions,” Ginny said, moving to between Harry and Graham, who moved over without a thought, proud to be standing there among the three who were obviously the leaders of the Hogwarts Protectors.  
  
“Ginny?” Molly Weasley gasped, and all five turned to look at her.  
  
“Like I said, many of you would be surprised,” was all Ginny said in reply.  
  
“For years we’ve been preparing, gathering what knowledge we could,” Harry said. “Finally, three years ago, the group training to fight expanded from my closest friends to anyone I knew I could trust, which quickly became the entire school. What’s more, we’ve been placing protections and traps around the school all year, yet no one, not even the Headmaster, has caught on.”  
  
Eyes turned to look at Dumbledore, who was looking at Harry with a blank face, but Harry could see it in his eyes. He had no idea what Harry was talking about, and it frightened him to realize it.  
  
“We could lock all of you adults in this room and fight the battle by ourselves when Voldemort comes back for round two,” Harry stated, boldly in the adults’ opinions and truthfully in the students’. “It’s obvious that none of you believe me, but that doesn’t matter because we students know the truth.  
  
“What happens next is up to you. Choose to fight alongside us, or you won’t be fighting at all.”  
  
Harry watched as adults looked insulted by what he said, as if they couldn’t believe he had the gall to say that, but Harry was looking on without emotion. Among the few not speaking were Dumbledore and Snape. Just then, Sirius, Remus, Tonks, Daniel, and Samantha walked into the Great Hall and nodded at Harry when they saw him; he made no move to recognize them and neither did anyone else who had seen them enter.  
  
“HPs,” Harry called, and every single student looked up at him while the adults were confused by his call. “Come. We have planning to do.”  
  
To the shock of the adults in the room and Harry’s amusement at their disbelief, all of those with Journals walked straight through the barrier and went to their leaders, forming their teams without thought. It was even more amusing when the adults tried to get through the barrier but couldn’t, not even Dumbledore.  
  
“Nicely done,” Harry complimented Demelza, and she smiled and looked proud.  
  
“All thanks to your teachings,” she stated as the only person other than the colored Journal group to know the spell as she had been tasked to specifically activate the protections around the school if needed.  
  
“Now, Maya, it’s time for you to help us out,” Harry said as he waved his wand and silently added a second ward to stop anyone from listening in as Dumbledore tried to calm the adults down and make a decision on what to do.  
  
“It’s time?” she asked, and Harry nodded.  
  
“ _Ankh, you and Maya are doing a little… reconnaissance,_ ” Harry hissed, and Ankh slipped out of his special, protected area on Harry’s shoulder to sit on top of it.  
  
“ _Very well, but is she not in the wrong form_?” he asked, and Harry nodded at her.  
  
“Here?” she asked in disbelief, and Harry just smirked, gesturing around the room.  
  
“Why not show everyone here what my group can _truly_ do?” he suggested, and she smiled mischievously before going right to the edge of the barriers, Harry following with Ankh.  
  
Before everyone’s eyes, she transformed into her snake form, and Ankh slithered down Harry to join her as they made their way out of the Hall after Harry and Ginny had put a little communicator on each snake so that the four could keep contact. Around the Hall, everyone in the Hogwarts Protectors besides those who knew of her form were staring at her in awe as she left while the adults did the same but in shock.  
  
“What was _that_?” an adult finally demanded, and Harry grinned as he canceled the ward so that he could be heard.  
  
“ _That_ , my friends, is only one secret among many that you have no idea about,” he said with a smirk.  
  
“We’ve noticed that _none_ of you have even asked what we have and can do,” the twins mused loudly, not even looking at the adults but the night sky.  
  
“We knew what was coming and from what direction,” Ron stated. “Even more, we had something you’ve never seen before to relay the information around.” He was holding up his own earpiece, and the adults said nothing.  
  
“It’s quite funny how you all look at us and think about our age, not what we might be able to provide to help win this battle with very few deaths,” Euan mentioned with a slight glare.  
  
“We’ve got so many tricks up our sleeves that not even everyone in this small army knows everything,” Danielle Boot stated.  
  
“Maya is doing reconnaissance with my snake Ankh,” Harry said, breaking through the anger and resentment that he knew his fellow students were feeling towards the adults. “In a few minutes, I’ll probably send more people out to help get us more information about where Voldemort and the Death Eaters are — maybe even what they’re planning. We’ll do it without being caught as well.  
  
“Choose what to do because we’re almost through giving you another chance to work with us.” He paused before adding one more thing, “Remember this: We do not need you to win this battle.” That might be a slight lie, but it would, hopefully, get them to agree to his terms.  
  
Harry recast the second barrier and turned away from the adults, the leaders forming a circle in the middle, the colored Journal group around them, and everyone else clustered around them.  
  
“Report on any casualties or bad wounds, please,” Harry requested of the leaders, who were the ones to gather the information from their classmates.  
  
“Colin took a bad Cutting Hex to the shoulder,” Demelza said quietly, and Harry looked at her with a bit of worry, not liking her tone at all. She looked at him, and he saw the haunted look in her eyes, but he also knew Colin was fine. “I was there when it happened. If I hadn’t seen the curse just moments before it hit him and pushed him slightly, he’d have taken the hit to the neck and died, Harry. In any case, it took three of us to heal it and two Blood Replenishing Potions to get him back on his feet so that he could retreat from the fighting.”  
  
“You saved him, which is what matters,” Harry told her, moving so that he could hug her to him, her face against his chest. “He’s alive and obviously ready to fight again. After this he’ll be more careful. Stick to him and have another person or two with him at all times. Otherwise, he’s alive.”  
  
“Thanks Harry,” she said quietly, pulling away, and Harry gave her a half-grin before going back to his spot and looking around for more reports.  
  
“It’s mostly just cuts that were healed, Harry,” Ginny said for the group, and all the leaders nodded. “Some were bad, but no one except Colin came close to dying.”  
  
Harry nodded thoughtfully. He had been hoping for a report like that, but what he had expected had been a lot worse with at least a couple of deaths. What he couldn’t figure out was why…  
  
A grin began to slowly grow on Harry’s face that worried those who could see him, but he ignored their shared looks. In his mind, he had figured out why there hadn’t been any deaths on their side.  
  
“They’re underestimating us,” he said quietly, and those closest to him looked up in surprise, so he repeated himself louder. “They’re underestimating us! The Death Eaters look at us and see school children, maybe some their own children or others their children’s age, and they think that we’re just getting lucky with a few _basic_ spells and swinging a sword around. None of them realized until it was too late that we’re not just school children. Death Eaters lost to us because they’re idiots who see what they want to see!”  
  
Around Harry, people were beginning to catch on. Most had got it by the time he was done, and they were all smirking at the possibilities this brought along.  
  
“Are we going to use this to our advantage?” Terry asked, and everyone was watching Harry as he nodded with a smug grin.  
  
“Bloody hell, yes!” he exclaimed. “Tom and his servants won’t know what hit them.”  
  
Harry had the strategists take the portable Map they had brought with them and use the Head Table as a place to use it. Second and third years were asked to work with the first years and their Map to figure out where there were still pranks, what could be moved around to replace used up stuff, and anything to do with traps. The aerial squad was to work with Ron so that they could figure out plans of how to use the air to attack the Death Eaters, though Fred and George had been asked to stay. Finally, the rest of the fighters besides his closest friends were to go to an open area and check each other’s armor as well as for missed wounds.  
  
“What are you going to do with us?” Astoria asked calmly, leaning against Daphne, who had rolled her eyes when her sister had originally done it, but they all knew she didn’t mind.  
  
Harry was about to answer when he suddenly raised a hand, he and Ginny both concentrating on the voices in their ears. All he caught before closing his eyes was Graham relaxing slightly, and Harry knew then that the boy had been worried about his sister.  
  
“ _Sorry it took a bit_ ,” Maya hissed into Harry’s earpiece. “ _We had to get away from Voldemort so that he wouldn’t hear the Parseltongue._ ”  
  
“ _It’s fine, go ahead,_ ” he hissed back.  
  
“ _The Dark Speaker is in the forest, his alive men all with him,_ ” Ankh reported. “ _The dead are still where you left them._ ”  
  
“ _Voldemort is angry with the Death Eaters,_ ” Maya added helpfully. “ _They did not manage to kill a single person, he said, while over half of his forces were dead before they retreated. It did not help when one man informed him that it was mostly school children fighting his men and killing them. It seems fighting with mostly children threw them off enough that they couldn’t kill anyone as they didn’t know whether the person they were fighting was a child or not._ ”  
  
“ _Tom wouldn’t be happy about that,_ ” Ginny hissed in amusement.  
  
“ _He told them that they could stop themselves from killing the children if they must, but the Order members must die, and you’re his, Harry,_ ” Maya reported, and Harry snorted.  
  
“ _It’s hard to believe Tom was once a Slytherin with the way he’s been fighting this war. Everyone knows that to stop a chance of your biggest opponent dying is to give the other team another win, and he’s stopping so many chances of my death that it’s getting quite sad.”  
  
“Well, he wants to kill you himself,_ ” she said, but Harry already knew that.  
  
“ _Keep an eye on him for a bit_ ,” he told Maya and Ankh. “ _We’ll be sending out the aerial Animagi shortly.”  
  
“Got it,_ ” they replied, and Harry opened his eyes.  
  
“Tom is furious at the fact that there were no deaths but he lost over half his force,” Harry informed the anxious students with a grin. “Supposedly they don’t have to kill a student if they do not wish to, but the Order members must die, and I’m to be left for Tom.”  
  
“Nothing new there,” Tracey muttered from beside him, and Harry bumped her shoulder with his so that they could share a quick grin before he grew serious again.  
  
“Fred, you and I are going to talk about the extra products I know you and George brought along with you,” he stated quickly, barely finishing and not giving him time to acknowledge the order before moving on. “Astoria, George, Neville, and Padma, we need you to go to the forest and scout for us. Use the special communicators that allow us to pick up on your thoughts if you’re thinking directly to them instead of the voice ones, and _yes_ , I do know that they’re brand new and barely tested, but we can’t test them anymore as we need them _now_. All four of you need to be ready if I call you back suddenly.  
  
“Ginny, you go help the youngest years with planning the traps, and when I’m done with Fred, he’ll join you to help you figure out what to do with the new supplies he’s got. Natalie, Graham, and Tracey, I need you three to go around the adults as cats and just be there; I’ll probably be asking you to suddenly transform back to prove a point. Everyone else, you need to check the armor and bodies of the people leaving quickly so that they can go before joining the other fighters to have them check you over.”  
  
Everyone nodded and quickly rushed to their jobs, the bird Animagi getting checked over first with the cats next before those with other jobs last. Once Fred had been checked, he began explaining and showing Harry the projects he and George had been working on, and Harry made some suggestions, then sent him to Ginny so that they could make the ideas work.  
  
Hannah and Susan made Harry take off his armor and long-sleeved shirt so that they could check him over and clean him up. Once they were done, he pulled on a new shirt and used a spell to conceal him from everyone else as they checked his legs over before giving him new black pants to wear. Finally, he replaced his armor and invisible weapons before walking out of the wards and towards Dumbledore.  
  
“Have you all decided yet?” he asked, surprising all of the adults in the group except Dumbledore, who had been the only one to see him coming. The others in the group were adults from the Order, not any of Harry’s friends.  
  
“Most wish to know what you can offer, and many want you to send anyone underage away from the school immediately,” Dumbledore stated. “There are a few who are outright refusing to fight if any of you are part of the battle.”  
  
Harry nodded slowly. Unfortunately, he had been expecting something like this, so it didn’t surprise him at all. It also meant that, unless Dumbledore had decided for them, only portions of the adults would be fighting in the battle.  
  
“I see,” Harry said slowly. “Is there an overall decision?”  
  
“The main vote was to fight alongside you as long as you send anyone underage from the school,” Molly Weasley stated, glaring at Harry, but he was quite used to it and did nothing. In fact, he’d have been more surprised if she wasn’t glaring as her underage daughter was among those fighting.  
  
“Then I’m sorry, but you shall all have to stay in the Great Hall and allow us to win unless another decision is made,” Harry said a bit sadly, turning away from the group.  
  
“Harry, may I speak to you, please?” Dumbledore requested, and Harry gestured for Dumbledore to follow, leading him out of the Great Hall and into the empty Entrance Hall.  
  
“Yes, Headmaster?” Harry said, finally looking in Albus Dumbledore’s blue eyes.  
  
“Harry, you never allowed me to discuss with you Horcruxes as I had planned,” Dumbledore said quickly, but Harry just laughed.  
  
“Let me guess, you’re going to tell me that Voldemort made six, one of which was the little black diary I destroyed in my second year and the rest you cannot find.” Dumbledore’s shocked expression was all he needed to know he was correct. “Well, let me tell you something even more shocking, Professor: They’re all gone.”  
  
“Are you sure?” Dumbledore asked, his eyebrows raised in true shock and amazement.  
  
“Destroyed all six of them myself,” Harry stated with a smirk, and he began listing them, counting them all on his hand. “Tom Riddle’s diary, Marvolo Gaunt’s ring, Slytherin’s locket, Hufflepuff’s cup, Ravenclaw’s diadem, and Nagini, Voldemort’s snake. I destroyed the diary in the Chamber, and the ring and locket were found and destroyed in my third year. The diadem was in Hogwarts and found in my fourth year while I killed Nagini at the graveyard after Voldemort returned. The cup took a long time to find, and we only found it last year in Bellatrix Lestrange’s Gringotts vault, but it’s gone. You’re a bit behind the times, Professor.”  
  
Dumbledore said nothing as Harry smiled grimly at him before entering the Great Hall again, heading back to his friends only to be stopped by Sirius, Remus, Tonks, and the Greengrasses.  
  
“What was that about?” Daniel asked, looking at Dumbledore, who was headed back to his Order members looking a bit dazed.  
  
“He just received a bit of a shock,” Harry said with amusement. “Didn’t realize the reason he could find no Horcruxes was because they were mostly destroyed.”  
  
“You were playing around with him again, eh?” Sirius said, looking a bit proud. Harry just nodded as he looked at his godfather with a look that said _what do you think?_  
  
“Are we going to be allowed to fight even if these other adults aren’t?” Tonks asked, looking around as she caught sight of and nodded at some fellow Aurors.  
  
“If you don’t fight with us, I’ll be extremely disappointed,” Harry said. “I’m sorry, but I’ve got my little army to take care of, so if you’ll excuse me, I’ll see you when I know Voldemort is coming.”  
  
“Of course,” Remus and Samantha said at once, moving to allow Harry to go back to his friends, though he hugged each of them tightly before going.  
  
“ _Harry, Tom is getting ready to move within the next ten minutes,_ ” Neville suddenly called to his earpiece.  
  
“ _They’ve sent out a few scouts to see if we’re on the grounds or in the castle,_ ” Padma added.  
  
“Thanks you guys,” Harry said aloud, surprising a few adults as he passed them. “Head back while looking natural; don’t want them finding out about the Animagi of our group.”  
  
“ _We’ll be there soon,_ ” Astoria said, and Harry knew that she was the leader of the four despite being the youngest; it was just so Astoria.  
  
“ _Maya, Ankh, follow the scouts that pass by you_ ,” he hissed as he walked through the barriers. “ _When they head back, come to the castle_.”  
  
“ _Got it_ ,” Maya hissed for the pair.  
  
“We’ve got trouble on the way,” Harry called once he was done, and every head snapped to attention, looking at him. “Reports have come in that they’ll be here in ten, so get moving now!”  
  
Immediately the Hogwarts Protectors began packing up their stuff and rushing out of the warded area towards their assigned places from the first part of the battle, knowing they would be the same this time. When the adults tried to follow, they found they couldn’t get out of the Great Hall because of another barrier that Demelza had activated without their knowledge.  
  
“Are you all going to fight alongside us or are you going to stay in here?” Harry demanded of the adults as he took down the two barriers inside of the Great Hall. “Before anyone says anything, it’s the same setup that I said we used before, so not a single student is leaving the school. Deal with it! It’s their choice and they want to stay, so I’m not stopping them as I know they can fight. Trust your own children and the others here because they might just surprise you. Now, can I let you out of the Hall without another fight after this round, or shall I leave you in here?”  
  
“No one shall fight you anymore, Harry,” Dumbledore said, and Harry knew that no one would now. When Dumbledore said something, the adults followed.  
  
“Very well,” Harry agreed with a nod before waving his wand in the direction of the door. “We’ve got maybe four minutes, so you’d best hurry.” Adults rushed out of the Hall and onto the grounds as Harry watched from by the Head Table.  
  
“ _Harry_ ,” Ankh hissed, and Harry turned to his right to see Maya standing there with his snake in her hands, a slight grin on her worried face.  
  
“Thanks,” Harry said as he took Ankh and put him at the opening of the holder on his shoulder, allowing the snake to get comfortable.  
  
“No problem,” she replied. Harry then gestured for her to take off her armor for her own check before the battle, and Maya sighed but complied with his wishes, allowing him to check for wounds and any damage on her armor while she changed her clothes into fresh ones.  
  
“ _Just over a minute away, Harry_ ,” Bradley commented over the earpiece, and Harry nodded even though he wouldn’t see it before gesturing for Maya to follow.

 


	43. Chapter Forty-Three

When they arrived on the grounds, the same group was waiting outside the Entrance Hall, and no one said a thing as they watched the spells begin again in the distance, this time the sounds of swords being used was already in the air as there was no holding back this round.

“Use your forms if you need to escape, fight better, or help someone,” Harry called down the group that he now noted the twins had joined. “If you need your form for any reason, _use it_. Got me?”

“Got it,” they all replied, and Harry knew they were relieved to have permission to use their forms this round if needed. He had a feeling the next round would be the last, and they would be using their forms without thought at that time.

When the Death Eaters finally came into view, some of Harry’s friends used Blasting, Fire, and Cutting Curses to attack, but a few decided to do the same thing as Harry, by coincidence: Use throwing knives.

He began quickly pulling the knives from their invisible hiding places all over his armor and body. Taking only long enough to aim, Harry began throwing knives without abandon, using the same knives over and over again as they reappeared in their sheaths. Typically, he needed two or three knives per Death Eater, sometimes more if the opponent didn’t stop. In the end, he had stopped or killed over twenty Death Eaters with the knives before he stopped using them.

Once that was done, Harry pulled out Gryffindor’s Sword in one hand and his custom-made sword in the other. As Harry rushed into the real battle, swinging the swords around to slice off body parts and stab Death Eaters through the heart or other vital organs, he couldn’t help but think that he was actually killing real live men with families.

Shaking his head slightly, he forced the thoughts from his mind. He could think about that sort of thing once Voldemort was truly dead. Until then, all he could do was fight and not think about what he was truly doing. This was war, and there would be deaths. All they could do was make sure they weren’t on their side.

Slowly, Harry and his friends made their way away from the castle and towards the true battle. They were joining those who were tiring quickly, unable to handle so much fighting for so long.

In a break in the fighting when Harry had a chance to look around, his heart almost stopped as he saw Moony and Fenrir Greyback fighting. Eyes wide, Harry took off at a run because he could see that Moony was out of his league against the werewolf that had allowed the wolf to seep into his human side even when it wasn’t a full moon. The man he thought of as an uncle needed help!

Pulling out one of the two silver knives he owned from a sheath on his thigh, Harry put his custom-made sword away, keeping Gryffindor’s Sword in his left hand. By the time he fought his way to the pair, though, Greyback had used his long, disgusting nails to cut a huge gash in Moony’s chest, and it was all Harry could to do hold back his tears as he watched it bleed terribly while stabbing Greyback through the heart from behind.

Once sure that the werewolf was dead, he pulled the knife from his back and made his way to Remus. He was on the ground, his hands on the deep, jagged wound, but his eyes were on Harry as he sunk to his knees in front of the man, his weapons on the ground between them.

“Harry,” Remus whispered, and Harry let out a sob, tears running down his cheeks unchecked. “Harry, listen to me. I died trying to make a better world for Teddy. If Dora… if she dies as well, you’ll watch him, right?”

“Of course I will, Moony,” Harry said through his tears, unable to believe that this man could barely speak above a whisper. “I’ll treat him as if he’s my own while making sure he knows about his family and what they did to make the world a better place. He’ll always know your name, Remus.”

“Tell Teddy I loved him with all my heart, and tell Dora the same,” Remus gasped before he coughed up blood and his eyes glazed over, still staring up at the sky as he took his last breath.

Letting out one last sob, Harry reached out and closed the eyes of Remus Lupin, known as Moony to his friends and family.

Then, he wiped away his tears, sheathed the silver dagger, pulled out his second sword again, and stood, both swords in hand as he rushed back into battle, full of anger at Remus’s death and channeling it to keep him moving while not letting it control him completely.

“Harry, have you seen Moony?” Sirius called suddenly as they neared each other, Harry just killing outright without a care in the world after having to watch Remus die.

Harry couldn’t speak, but he looked his godfather in the eyes, and the man _knew_. There was no need to speak words as the final Marauder screamed and suddenly sent a Blasting Hex at a rat on the ground with a silver paw, and Harry knew that the rat was finally dead. Then, Sirius went into the battle with as much anger as Harry had begun with, though it was dying out now.

A while later, still fighting, with Tracey beside him now, Harry saw Tonks fighting Bellatrix, and he had a sense of foreboding as he watched them. Tracey put a hand on his arm as a green light left Bellatrix’s wand and hit Tonks in the chest as she was shielding against a Cutting Curse launched moments before.

“ _NO!_ ” Harry yelled, unable to believe his eyes but having to accept it as true.

Tears flowing down his face again, Harry led Tracey towards Bellatrix, who looked upon them with glee as she laughed at the death of her sister’s daughter.

Tracey used her wand to fire spells at the witch as Harry used swords to deflect curses from Bellatrix. Slowly, he made his way closer to the Death Eater. As Tracey sent five Cutting Curses in a row, Harry launched forward, cutting Bellatrix’s wand hand off with one sword as the other went into her heart, the Cutting Curses hitting her in the head.

Breathing heavily, Harry pulled his sword from the body and turned to face Tracey, who was also in tears as they went to Tonks and closed her eyes as well.

Unable to do anything else, they moved on, separating when they were forced to as Harry fought full of anger and anguish.

Finally, fighting with swords wasn’t working as well, so Harry used another form of fighting: as a wolf.

Transforming the moment his swords were sheathed, Harry tore into Death Eaters, destroying wands with a single slash of his claws. Most took one look at that almost-black wolf with emerald green eyes and a lighter line of fur in the shape of a lightning bolt and ran, but some fought him, trying to kill him as they didn’t realize who he was. In the end, though, his anger had boosted his adrenaline so much that he was moving faster than he ever had before. Nothing thrown at him hit anything more than his shoulder as he tore through the ranks of Death Eaters.

“ _Harry, you’re coming up on Voldemort, and… Sirius is there,_ ” Bradley suddenly said into the earpiece that he was still wearing even as a wolf, and Harry sped up instantly.

He couldn’t let Sirius die as well! Remus and Tonks were already dead; Harry couldn’t lose his godfather on top of that.

It was as if, deep down, Harry knew that by not losing more than a student or two he would lose more adults in his life. In the end, there was nothing Harry could do to prevent what would happen.

In front of Harry, Voldemort and Sirius facing off in an open area, shooting spells back and forth. One look made it obvious that Sirius was at an extreme disadvantage and would lose.

Just as Harry reached the edge of the area, Voldemort hit Sirius in the back with two conjured snakes, sending the man to the ground and leaving Harry frozen as he could only watch.

As Voldemort began to say the two words that would end his godfather’s life, Sirius looked up and met Harry’s eyes, recognizing the wolf instantly as his godson. The look in the gray eyes of his godfather was enough for Harry to know that Sirius had accepted what was about to happen, and he didn’t want Harry risking his life to try to save him when he was beyond saving.

“I love you,” Sirius mouthed, the look in his eyes saying the same thing, and Harry knew his emerald green eyes were also sending the same message.

Then the green light hit Sirius Black, and the gray eyes became dead, just as dead as the man the eyes belonged to.

Just barely holding in a howl, Harry turned and ran, unable to stare at his godfather’s body any longer. He ran back to the castle, weaving in and out of fighters as, behind him, a green flare rose into the sky to make the Death Eaters retreat.

There would be injured and there would be dead this time. All Harry could do was hope that no one who had died was from the Hogwarts Protectors.

Deep in his mind, Harry knew none of them would be dead. The Death Eaters had been after the Order members, and they underestimated the kids on the battlefield. Plus, he knew that his little army had been prepared and moved fast. All of them looked out for one another so that they’d take a hit for a friend as long as it meant they’d both live in the end.

Rushing into the Great Hall, Harry didn’t even transform back as his four paws sent him flying up to the Head Table, where he laid down and watched with pain-filled eyes as the fighters slowly entered the Hall, the younger students helping the injured in.

It was a painful sight for Harry to watch, but he felt a bit of relief enter his body as each person entered the Hall until he was full of it. All of the students had lived, though some obviously needed some medical attention. Still, they’d live, even if they did have a few scars to tell the tale with later on.

Ginny and Tracey had come over to him and were trying to convince him to transform, but Harry ignored them and watched everything as a wolf. In the end, they sighed and just sat beside him, each with an arm on his flank.

Dumbledore was taking count of the losses his people had suffered while Madam Pomfrey healed the students with injuries, stating that they were well enough to fight again as long as they rested for an hour, though a few were given Dreamless Sleep Potions and told that they couldn’t fight again that night. It was a bit of a miracle that she wasn’t lecturing them about fighting, but it seemed she understood that they all had to help in some way, so she should just be relieved that it was only the older students outside. Plus, none had died yet.

“Harry, why won’t you transform?” Ginny asked him softly, and he turned his head to look into her brown eyes. The sadness in his eyes must have spoken volumes, but she still didn’t understand.

“Ginny, look at the adults who are here,” Tracey whispered softly, and Harry watched as her eyes widened bit by bit for each person she saw missing.

“Remus, Tonks, and Sirius?” she gasped as if unable to believe it, and Harry nodded, whining softly. “You saw them all happen, didn’t you?” Again Harry nodded, putting his snout on her legs as he tried not to cry. “Oh, Harry,” she sighed sadly, wrapping her arms around his neck as Tracey just sat there with a hand on his back moving softly.

They stayed like that for another minute before the other leaders and colored Journal friends joined them. Sighing, Harry stood, waiting until Tracey and Ginny had moved before he stood on his hind legs and transformed back into a human. The moment he was completely transformed, Ginny and Tracey put hands on his arms, saying nothing more but giving him silent support.

“I’ll be fine,” he said quietly, looking them each in the eyes on at a time, letting them recognize that he’d made it through the battle before he allowed himself to truly break down.

“Just remember we’ll be here for you when it happens,” Ginny replied, and Tracey nodded in agreement. Harry inclined his head slightly before turning to the leaders behind him.

“How many are out of the fight?” Harry asked them, and the reports were quickly given. Mostly fifth years had been hit one too many times, leaving them lightheaded from blood loss and in need of a nice rest, though Lavender Brown from his own year was out for the rest of the evening as well, and Colin from Ginny’s class had been told to stay out from the next fight, obviously exhausted after his near brush with death earlier.

“Harry, you must stop the students from fighting in the next battle,” Dumbledore’s voice said from behind him. “People are dying out there.”

“No, Professor, I will not tell them to sit out while you adults fight a battle you are obviously not prepared for,” Harry replied, turning around. “Besides, it’s not the _students_ that are dying.”

“They’re tiring, Harry,” Dumbledore pleaded, but Harry interrupted his next words with a head shake as he pointed to where the Hogwarts Protectors were grouped on one side of the Great Hall.

Dumbledore turned to see that each student was drinking a steaming goblet, which was obviously Pepper-Up Potion by the steam coming out of their ears once they’d downed the potion. Harry could tell that the professor recognized defeat on that front because those potions would allow another few hours of fighting at the very least.

“Here Harry,” Tracey said softly as she walked up to him, handing him his own goblet to gulp down quickly, ignoring the burning as it reenergized him.

“Very well, it seems I cannot do anything to stop you,” Dumbledore sighed, “but please, Harry, you cannot allow the lives of Sirius, Remus, and Nymphadora to be in vain, nor the others who have died here tonight fighting Voldemort and his forces.”

Harry snarled, and it was only Tracey’s calming hand on his shoulder that allowed him to stop and glare at the Headmaster. The man took a step back at the look in Harry’s emerald green eyes.

“It is _because_ of Sirius, Remus, Tonks, and everyone else who has been hurt or died in this war and the last that we have to do this!” Harry exclaimed. “They died protecting the innocent, and now it’s our turn, Professor. In the end, no matter how sad they might be, they would all understand what we are doing and back us up. _Do not_ try to guilt trip me with their deaths!”

Harry took a deep breath before continuing, “The three of them came here knowing that there was a good chance they might die fighting this war. We _all_ knew that we might die. If that’s the consequence of getting rid of Voldemort, then so be it. We’ll remember them as heroes, not victims.”

With that, Harry turned away from the Headmaster, who he heard sigh behind him. Harry’s eyes were closed against the withheld pain of the loss fighting to overwhelm him, knowing he had to lead the students.

“I’ve done wrong by you Harry,” he heard Dumbledore whisper before the much older man turned and walked back to the Order, leaving only Harry standing there.

Though it took him a moment, Harry was finally able to walk over to where the Hogwarts Protectors were waiting, worry on all of their faces, though the eldest of the fighters had a determined look in their almost blank eyes, emotions thrown out the window at this point.

“Are we ready for another round?” Harry asked them, and there was a positive response from them all. “Check clothes and armor, then. If your pants and long-sleeved shirts are too ripped up and you don’t have another set, put on the training robes we use over your armor. I know that’s what I’m going to be doing for this round.”

Everyone nodded and began to check their friends, Tracey pulling Harry away a small distance so that they could check each other over. Tracey mostly had cuts that had been healed, and her armor was fine, so she quickly changed clothes. Harry, on the other hand, needed some healing of cuts as he hadn’t been in the right mind to heal himself once Tonks had died. Once Tracey had finished, he pulled on a white T-shirt, loose pants, his armor, and a set of Slytherin robes to cover it all.

“Ginny’s talking with Dumbledore,” she whispered to him, and Harry turned to see that his redheaded girlfriend was, indeed, talking to the Headmaster on the other side of the room, fresh clothes and armor showing that she had already been checked over.

“I wonder what he’s telling her,” he muttered to Tracey as Ginny’s face went through a cycle of emotions, despair, sadness, anger, and hopelessness the only ones he could see before she pulled a blank face and nodded at the older man. They seemed to have come to an understanding of some sort, but Harry wasn’t too worried because he trusted Ginny.

“If it’s important, she’ll tell us,” Tracey replied, and they both turned away just as Ginny was mobbed by her parents and oldest siblings.

After that, everything turned into a blur for Harry as he went from student to student, encouraging them, hearing reports, and just being the leader he knew he had to be despite the tension and pain in the room. The strategists and first years were keeping an eye on the portable Map so that they would be prepared when Voldemort attacked again while the twins were helping figure out what traps and supplies could be given to the second and third years for the Death Eaters that broke through the ranks to enter the school. Ron had already told Harry that the aerial squad was out of supplies but would keep their brooms at the ready if they were needed while they joined those out on the grounds.

“ _Ankh, can you go find Sebae and ask her how she’s doing_?” Harry asked of his snake, who agreed and accepted the communicator to allow him to report back to Harry.

Once Ankh was gone, Harry continued on, only stopping to accept the food and water pushed into his hands by one of the first years rushing to each fighter, barely stopping to say anything more than to “Eat this or Madam Pomfrey won’t let you leave!”

Forcing down the bread and butter with gulps of water, Harry continued to walk around the Great Hall, pausing whenever he was called over by one of the Protectors. Most seemed to be willing to leave him alone, though, understanding that he had lost those he counted as family in that second battle.

“ _Sebae is fine, and she says she took care of many Dark Wizards trying to sneak in from the side of the castle,_ ” Ankh suddenly hissed into Harry’s ear, and he thanked his friend, asking the corn snake to pass his thanks along to the basilisk.

“Harry!” Bradley Martin suddenly called from his spot by the Map, and Harry turned quickly, rushing up to see that Voldemort’s forces were on the move again.

“PLACES EVERYONE!” he yelled to the entire Hall, and the students were once again quickly moving to where they knew they needed to be, the adults following them after a few moments of shock at the abrupt change in the atmosphere.


	44. Chapter Forty-Four

Harry was joined by his closest friends as he stood in front of the castle, Ron among them this time. Swords and wands were drawn, daggers and throwing knives all within easy reach. There was a tension in the air as lights began illuminating the sky yet again in the distance, screams of pain just barely reaching their ears, though they quickly grew louder as the fighting grew steadily closer.

A shudder was shared by all as a girl’s scream tore through the air from not far in front of them, and Harry closed his eyes for a moment to pray that she had only been hurt badly, not killed.

Then the fight was upon them yet again, and Harry moved forward, Gryffindor’s Sword slicing through the air to meet Death Eater as he silently cast Stunners, Banishing Hexes, and other, harsher spells. Around him, screams of grown men rang before they were silenced with death or unconsciousness.

Cuts dripping blood began to accumulate on Harry’s arms and legs until he pulled back to heal them all, get rid of the blood, and repair the small tears in his robes as he knew he had no other clothes in his pouches to wear after these.

Time went on as he made his way through the terrible battle, sword and left hand covered in warm, slick blood that he barely noticed anymore as both arms swung around to hack, slash, and launch spells.

Finally, he found a clearing where there were no more Death Eaters, and it was soon obvious why: Albus Dumbledore had put some sort of charm around it so that the two of them could speak in the midst of battle.

“What do you want?” Harry asked as he panted, waving his wand to vanish the blood from his body and take this as a chance to heal.

“We must speak of grave matters, Harry,” Dumbledore said sadly, his normally sparkling eyes a dark blue with pain. “You say you destroyed all of Tom’s Horcruxes, but there is still one more.”

Harry’s head flashed up, annoyance at the Headmaster for stopping him in the middle of the battle forgotten in his shock.

“ _What_?” he hissed between his teeth in English, disbelief shining in his green eyes.

“Harry, that Halloween night over sixteen years ago, when the Killing Curse reflected off of you and hit Voldemort, did something more,” Dumbledore said, his voice heavy. “Soul ripped so many times and so weak, Voldemort didn’t even realize it when yet another piece of his soul was torn from the rest once more to attach itself to the only living thing in the cottage of Godric’s Hollow.” Dread filled Harry’s body as understanding filled him even before Dumbledore said one final thing. “Harry, _you_ are the final Horcrux.”

“My scar,” was all Harry could mutter, touching it with a light finger as he tried to understand what this meant for him.

“I never wished to have to tell you this, Harry, but there is only one way to get rid of the final Horcrux.”

“Let him kill me,” Harry finished in a monotone, his hand falling back to his side as his face lost all expression, his normally expressive green eyes losing their light.

“Harry, you must see it as a chance to protect and save your friends,” Dumbledore suddenly said intensely. “If you do this, Voldemort can finally be killed, even if it is not by your hand.”

His words pierced Harry’s mind, and Harry blinked once before he nodded sharply. He could see how his doing this would protect the others by giving them a chance to finally kill Lord Voldemort even if he wasn’t alive for it. As long as Tom Riddle was finally mortal, he could be killed just as much as any other person, though it would take skill to hit him with something that would kill the monster.

“I need to think,” Harry muttered, and Dumbledore nodded, his face sympathetic and sad.

Pulling out his _Firebolt_ , Harry regrew it and quickly flew up into the air, looking down at the flashes of different colors of light all along the grounds. Flying a bit lower, he began to pick out his friends.

Tracey and Ginny were fighting back-to-back against three different Death Eaters, one of the robed and masked figures falling the moment his eyes zeroed in on them. Ron was helping his older brother Bill as they double-teamed a Death Eater. Draco was fighting his way to Astoria, trying to help her as she was being overwhelmed by three Death Eaters at once. Daphne took down two Death Eaters with one spell while Blaise healed himself because of a cut to the stomach.

Around the edges, Harry could see a random flash of yellow that appeared to be moving, and whenever he saw it, a Death Eater fell; Sebae was doing her job well. Random explosions from in the Entrance Hall, just outside the castle, and from areas all over the battle showed where the twins, second years, and third years were attacking.

Finally, though, Harry flew towards the Astronomy Tower, landing on the roof to look out at the Hogwarts grounds. In the distance he could see the sun rising, just a light line of purple beginning to push away the darkness that had been covering the battle. Pretty soon blues, oranges, reds, and yellows would join the purple in getting rid of the black, but by the time the sun was truly up, the battle would be over.

“How could I actually go get myself killed?” he asked himself, but his body seemed to want to give him the answer as his eyes moved once again, trailing from the sunrise back to the battle.

Students in robes of blue, green, yellow, and red fought alongside their classmates still with the Hogwarts crest visible on their bodies, silver swords flashing blue, red, purple, yellow, green, and so many other colors as spell fire exploded in the air. Their movements showed both exhaustion and determination to fight the Death Eaters, werewolves, and anything else Voldemort threw at them to protect their school. No matter what, they were going to fight until they either won or lost.

_If I can help them win by dying, how can I not do so?_

Then a loud explosion caught his attention, and Harry turned to see Voldemort and Dumbledore now fighting.

Hopping on his broom, Harry flew far above the duel, watching as water flew out of the lake to turn into a snake aimed at Dumbledore that suddenly froze, shattered, and flew at Voldemort, who melted the ice into water that fell to the ground harmlessly. A flame whip shot from Dumbledore’s wand to be barely blocked by Voldemort, who conjured metal darts and Banished them at Dumbledore. Suddenly the darts shot back at Voldemort, who just barely Banished them to the lake.

Angry, Voldemort conjured a snake and hissed something Harry couldn’t make out as it was too far away for him to hear. The snake was suddenly launched into the air, headed back to earth from only a few meters below Harry, who could only watch in horror as the snake opened its mouth to allow the fangs to be aimed at Dumbledore’s head as it fell at high speeds, the Headmaster defending against another water attack from Voldemort.

Just as Harry was about to call out to Dumbledore, he launched the water at the snake, looking up to be sure it hit.

Unfortunately, that moment was his downfall as Voldemort had already shot the Killing Curse at the great wizard, whose blue eyes met Harry’s emerald green ones with a dying wish for Harry to end this before they went blank.

All around the grounds, the fight stopped as Dumbledore’s body fell and Voldemort yelled in triumph, shooting up his green flare to signal a retreat.

Still in shock, the Hogwarts Protectors and Order members returned to the Great Hall, Harry meeting them there in silence, his _Firebolt_ in hand as he stood at the entrance, thoughts flying through his head. Not only did he have Dumbledore’s dying wish to think about, but he knew that _he_ was now the certain leader of the resistance at Hogwarts.

Ginny and Tracey stayed by him when they reached him, allowing the rest to enter the Hall as Hagrid brought Dumbledore’s body into the Hall to rest with the other fighters. Neither said anything, but there was no need to.

Finally, Harry saw all the students were still alive, though many were out of the fight now. The living Order members just looked lost without their leader. This meant Harry had to step forward, so he went to the Head Table and waited for everyone to notice him. It didn’t take long for silence to fall.

“Dumbledore died for this war to end, and we can’t let his effort be in vain,” he said, his voice strained as he forced out the words while trying to push aside his emotional trauma from all the death as well as what he knew was coming. “Students and adults alike need to continue the fight. Don’t give up because of this. Does anyone disagree with me when I say that it would be the last thing Dumbledore would have wanted?”

Not a single Order member spoke, so Harry continued, “Please, you Order members _need_ to work with us! Speak to the strategists over by the large Map over here on the Head Table. If you want, ask the students about what they know and how we fight. Just stop thinking about us as kids and look at us as fellow fighters! We have plans, traps, and still more supplies, even after all this fighting. If we work together, _we will win_! Do it for those who have been lost in the first and second wars, those who have died tonight — do it for Dumbledore!”

Harry saw that he had finally gotten through to the Order of the Phoenix and sagged slightly in relief. The battle between allies was finally over.

“ _I know you still prepare to fight,_ ” a high, cold voice suddenly rang loudly throughout the grounds, pounding into everyone’s ears. “ _Your leader, Albus Dumbledore, is dead! Surrender and Lord Voldemort will be merciful._ ” Harry was not alone as he snorted at the idea of Lord Voldemort being merciful, even if he _was_ the one speaking.

“ _Harry Potter, I speak to you now,_ ” Voldemort said, and all eyes trailed over to Harry, but his face was blank, knowing what was coming. “ _Look at the death surrounding you. Your godfather dead by my hand just as much as the Headmaster. Three years ago you chose wrong when you turned down my offer, and there are no second chances. Come to me within the next hour, and no more will die. Everyone else will be spared if you come to me and die. You have one hour, Harry Potter, before the fighting commences again, and this time my Death Eaters will be targeting students. One hour._ ”

All around him, the Hogwarts Protectors immediately called for him not to go, not to protect them like _this_ , but Harry’s mind was spinning. He had to get away from everyone, away from the pressure of the eyes upon him.

Barely able to keep up pretenses that he was fine, Harry left the Great Hall and went outside, climbing onto his broom again to fly up to the Astronomy Tower for the second time that night. He knew the others would know he was up there, but Harry also knew that they’d understand he needed to be alone right now.

Looking at the horizon again, Harry saw that the sun had risen higher than before, changing the horizon from blues and purples to yellows, oranges, and reds with only a thin cloud here and there in the sky. It was a peaceful sight as long as he didn’t look down to see the bodies of Death Eaters littering the grounds of Hogwarts castle, branding the image into his memory for the rest of his life. He couldn’t imagine what it was like for the youngest students to see this, so he hoped they hadn’t allowed their curiosity to overtake them and look outside to see the horrifying sight.

With light now beginning to cover the castle and surroundings, it was obvious that there was a lot of red intermixed with the green below.

Turning away, Harry looked at the forest, his eyes purposely becoming unfocused as he crossed them to blur the image in front of him. As he did so, thoughts poured through his mind.

Voldemort was obviously lying as he would kill the students one way or another, but if he, Harry, went to the forest to meet with Voldemort and allow himself to be killed, it would hold up the Death Eaters long enough for the Hogwarts Protectors to prepare again. It wasn’t like Harry didn’t have to be killed by the monster anyway to get rid of the piece of soul that had used his scar as a home for over sixteen years. At least if he went now there would be something else to collect from it other than the loss of Voldemort’s final Horcrux.

Suddenly, Harry’s Journal burned against the skin of his chest where it rested, hanging from its place on the leather cord around his neck. Pulling it from his neck and activating it, he saw messages from many people requesting that he open a group for everyone to enter, and with a sigh, he did so, pulling in every student in the school.

The sudden barrage of yelling from everyone telling him not to listen to Voldemort made him close his eyes against it, unable to read it. He kept them closed until a specific level of heat was felt in his hands, and he looked down at the Journal to see Ginny and Tracey talking privately with him.

_**Ginny: Go, Harry.**  
_  
**_Harry: He told you?_**

**_Tracey: And she told me._ **

**_Harry: I love you both._ **

**_Ginny: We know, which is why you have to go._ **

**_Tracey: You’re doing this for all of us because you truly care for everyone in this school._ **

**_Both: Go._ **

Harry switched back to the large group and wrote _Silence_ ; then he waited for it. When it was finally silent, he continued.

_Harry: Thank you all for all you’ve done. I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people to train and fight alongside. To me, you’re all heroes for fighting in this, for being willing to give up your lives to protect this castle. Even more, you’re heroes because you’ll be the survivors who have to deal with everything that happened in this battle and afterwards._

_Ginny and Tracey: Just let him go._

Their words seemed to silence all of the complaints, but Harry wouldn’t have heard them anyway as he pressed a special button to allow them to continue on in group mode as he signed off of his Journal, placing it in his pocket before pulling out his Invisibility Cloak.

Covering himself and his broom with the Cloak, Harry flew to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, storing the shrunken broom away in his pocket as he walked, invisibly into the forest. He knew that he had to do this now, when his resolve was high and while it would still help everyone else. Of course, subconsciously, Harry had already realized he would have one final battle because not all of him had agreed to this. Still, before he could have that, he had to get to the clearing, which was something his resolve could succeed at right now.

Head held high, Harry walked towards the place he had an unexplainable feeling of where Voldemort would be waiting.

…

“It’s hard, isn’t it?” Tracey asked Ginny quietly, and Ginny looked up at the girl she knew was going through just as much pain as she.

“I can’t believe we just told him to walk to what could possibly be his death,” she whispered, face pale as she tried to imagine life without Harry in it.

“We had to,” Tracey said gently, though her blue eyes showed the pain she felt at the idea of it. “If we hadn’t encouraged him, he wouldn’t have gone as easily, and you know Voldemort will never die if this doesn’t happen.”

“And Harry would do anything if we told him to,” Ginny finished with a deep, sad sigh. “I know, but it’s just hard.”

“Then let’s hope Dumbledore was correct and Harry will survive,” Tracey said, and Ginny nodded in agreement, her Journal in her hands even though she wasn’t reading any of the words, black lines of writing blurring together before her eyes.

She barely even noticed as a tear fell from her right eye, trailed down her cheek, and landed on the Journal.

…

Harry stood just inside the tree line of the clearing where Voldemort and his Death Eaters awaited him; if he was going to show up, that was.

While watching Voldemort and his followers, Harry was having an internal battle. He didn’t know if he should just walk into the clearing and face death, even though Dumbledore had told him that he was a Horcrux and would have to die so that Voldemort would be mortal.

Harry knew he had another ten minutes to decide, but he just didn’t know what to do.

Shifting beneath his Invisibility Cloak, Harry fingered the dagger that had been through so much with him and had been a huge asset in everything he did. His other hand grasped the handle of his holly wand, the one that was a brother to Voldemort’s yew wand.

Then, Harry’s right pocket heated up, no doubt Daphne trying to get him to talk so that she could try one last time to stop him, even though no one could stop the upcoming event once he walked into that clearing, if he did. That one thing reminded Harry what he was fighting for, who he was fighting for.

Every student, from Slytherin to Gryffindor to Ravenclaw to Hufflepuff, from first year to seventh, was counting on him. The Order of the Phoenix was counting on him. Families of his friends needed him to do this so that they could be safe and without fear that a Death Eater could turn up at their door and kill them at any given moment. Those still good in the Ministry needed him to stop Voldemort so that the Ministry could be fixed.

Most important in Harry’s mind, though, was that if he did this, Ginny would be able to live her life without fear or the chance of her family being killed by terrorists.

Looking down at his robes beneath his Cloak, Harry found it amusing that he was going to go stand up to Lord Voldemort, the heir of Slytherin, while wearing Slytherin-colored robes and with the Dagger on his waist.

Even if he _did_ die, Harry knew that it would mean someone else could finally kill Tom Marvolo Riddle, but he had a feeling Dumbledore had something up his sleeve.

Sighing internally, Harry made sure he was in shadow before slipping off his Cloak and putting it into the pocket of his robes that didn’t have his burning-hot Journal in it.

Quickly contemplating taking out his Journal and leaving it so that everyone could hear what happened in the forest clearing, Harry sighed slightly and slipped it out. Opening it and activating it, Harry put his pencil into place before pulling out the leather cord around his neck and attaching the Journal to it. Shrinking the journal, Harry slipped it under his shirt and sighed lightly, knowing that his friends would all quickly find out he was signed on and would be reading the journal like it was a lifeline.

Before he could change his mind, Harry James Potter, seventeen years old, wearing Slytherin-colored robes, a dagger hanging on his side, and his wand in its holster, walked out into the clearing and stared Lord Voldemort, the heir of Slytherin and the darkest Dark Lord ever seen, right in the eyes, knowing that this might be the last thing he ever saw.

…

_Tom Riddle: So you decided to show. Very well. Any last words?_

_Harry: Just get it over with._

_Riddle: Avada Kedavra!_

_Harry: *Mutters* Goodbye…_

The name Harry Potter disappeared from the list of names on every single Journal in existence.


	45. Chapter Forty-Five

Harry stood in his normal school uniform, his Slytherin robes covering the clothes. Strapped to his forearm on top of the robe was Slytherin’s Dagger while Gryffindor’s Sword hung in its scabbard from his hip and his wand sat in the wand holster attached to his left forearm.

Looking around, he saw that he was in an area that was completely white except for a creature that was whimpering some distance away. He didn’t even want to get close to it, so he walked away from the creature, wondering where he was and if he was going to stay here for eternity. If he was, he knew he would go crazy pretty quickly.  
  
Just then, a group of people walked up to him, and the area around changed into The Den from Hogwarts as if it had been plucked from his mind.  
  
“Mum? Dad? Samuel? Daniella? Sirius? Remus?” Harry gasped, unable to believe it when he saw the people he saw as parental figures in his life standing in front of him.  
  
“Harry,” his mother said, red hair swinging as she moved forward to hug Harry for the first time that he could remember.  
  
“Mum,” he whispered, wrapping his arms around her tightly. When arms wrapped around both of them together, Harry only whispered, “Dad.”  
  
“You’ve made us so proud that there are no words to describe it,” his father told Harry as they all pulled out of the hug.  
  
Harry choked up and said nothing in reply, instead turning just enough to look at the four others standing there, small smiles on their faces as they saw Harry with his parents for the first time since he had been a year old.  
  
“Pup,” Sirius said when he saw Harry looking at them, moving forward to pull Harry into a hug. “You make us all proud, Harry, and I hope you remember this when you grieve for us because our deaths were _not_ your fault.”  
  
“I know Sirius, Remus, I know,” Harry said, looking up at the werewolf as he added him to his words. “And Remus, I know Ginny and the others will watch over Teddy for you.”  
  
“Harry, _you’ll_ watch over my son for me, raising him alongside your own children,” Remus said lightly.  
  
“But… I died,” Harry said, his brow furrowing in confusion as he pulled away from Sirius to look at the six adults.  
  
“Harry, Voldemort killed his own piece of soul in you, not your soul,” Samuel said in the tone he had always used while teaching the teens. “This place — this is The Den, right? — is just a crossroads of sorts.”  
  
“You have a choice, Harry,” Daniella added softly. “You can stay here and move on, or you can go back to the others.”  
  
“It’s my choice?” Harry asked, biting his bottom lip as he thought, the nods confirming it. “What’s happening back there?”  
  
“They’ve all just seen your name disappear from the Journals, Harry,” Samuel sighed.  
  
“Daphne and Astoria are going to need you,” his mother added sadly, and Harry looked up at her in alarm.  
  
“Daniel and Samantha were found by Voldemort before Dumbledore got to him,” Remus informed Harry, tears actually forming in his eyes as he thought about his friends.  
  
“No,” Harry moaned, falling to his knees and holding his head with his hands. “How many more will die?!”  
  
“Too many,” his father sighed, but Harry heard something in his voice that made him look up.  
  
“Do I sense a ‘but’ in that?” he asked hopefully.  
  
“Very few will die if you return, Harry, and kill Tom yourself,” Sirius finished.  
  
“You think I’ll actually beat him if I go back?” Harry whispered, but he knew they all heard him.  
  
“If anyone can do it, Harry, it’s you,” Samuel said with so much conviction that Harry actually believed him even through the despair he felt after learning someone else he cared for had just died.  
  
“Harry, Severus is with Voldemort, and he’s willing to sacrifice himself to make sure the monster dies,” his Mum said, and Harry heard the sadness and love between siblings in his mother’s voice when she spoke of Severus Snape.  
  
Harry closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening them and accepting the hand his father was offering to be helped to his feet. Once standing, Harry looked at the people who had helped shape him in so many different ways throughout his life even if he barely knew two of them.  
  
They all meant so much to him, and he didn’t want to leave them, but when he thought of the Hogwarts Protectors, of Ginny, and of what they had been fighting for, Harry knew where he had to go.  
  
“I’ll see you again sometime in the future,” he said, looking at them all. They all just smiled sadly and moved to hug him one last time, some giving him short messages to pass onto their loved ones, his parents last and hugging him together. Each of them told him that they loved him, and he told them the same.  
  
Finally, Harry waved one final time, a tear falling down his cheek, and it all disappeared.

…

Five seconds passed, and the name Harry Potter reappeared on the list of people signed on.  
  
_Harry: *Gasps almost silently*_

…

“He’s alive,” was all Ginny could whisper as she watched her Journal in the Great Hall, sitting on the Head Table with Tracey next to her, each girl with an arm wrapped around the other.  
  
Around them, other students were all cheering quietly in relief and shock as they saw that Harry had survived again. The adults in the room were confused by their actions, but no one felt the need to explain events to the Order members. Their leader was alive, though still in Voldemort’s presence, and they had a fighting chance.  
  
“He’s alive,” Tracey whispered back in reply, both with tears slowly falling down their faces in relief.

…

Harry’s face was in the grass he had been standing on before the Killing Curse hit him. Around him, he could hear the voices of Death Eaters, all muttering with a slightly worried tone to their voices. Along his body, he could feel his weapons and armor still on him. Harry knew then that he had to remain still, breathing so shallowly that the movement wouldn’t be noticed.  
  
“I’m fine,” he heard Voldemort snarl at someone. “The boy, is he dead? You, check and tell me.”  
  
Harry could do nothing but hope that it was Severus Snape checking on him, or someone else on their side. He was turned over by hands with long nails, stating it wasn’t Professor Snape, but he still waited. One hand was then placed onto his heart, feeling his heartbeat without a doubt, but still not a word was spoken. Long hair of a woman touched Harry’s face as he felt her breath by his ear.  
  
“Is Draco alive? Did you keep your promise?” the voice of Narcissa Malfoy asked under her breath, and Harry knew he was safe.  
  
“Yes, he’s alive,” Harry hissed back, knowing he had just eased a mother’s worry with his words. He hoped Draco was watching his Journal and saw how much she cared for him.  
  
“He is dead!” she yelled to the Death Eaters, sitting up with her hand still on his chest. Harry could only hope Professor Snape recognized that he was still alive as Narcissa moved away from him, probably at a motion from Voldemort.  
  
“Harry Potter, dead by my own hand,” Voldemort crowed. “Let’s show what I can do to him. _Crucio_.”  
  
Harry felt himself lifted into the air by Voldemort’s spell, and he bit the inside of his lip to keep in his scream as he held himself in a relaxed state as best he could. The pain wasn’t as terrible as it could have been and had been in the past, but Harry still felt a pain that tore through his body, almost giving the charade away. Finally, when he was about to give in to the pain, Voldemort released the curse and allowed him to fall to the ground with a quiet “Thump.”  
  
“I believe it’s time we show the resistance that they have lost,” Voldemort mused quietly, and Harry could hear the smugness in his voice. “Their hero is now dead. Severus, carry the boy in your arms. It’s time to show your true colors.”  
  
“Of course, My Lord,” Professor Snape’s silky voice said, and Harry heard him walk over. A light tickling sensation covered him before Professor Snape was picking him up in his arms gently.  
  
“I know you’re alive,” his professor hissed gently into his ear, which was by his Head of House’s head as it was resting on his shoulder. “Tell me when to act, and I’ll distract the Dark Lord long enough for you to get to your army.”  
  
Harry didn’t reply.  
  
In his mind, he was thinking about his professor’s words. It didn’t take him more than a moment to realize that the man didn’t expect to live out the morning. He expected to be dead by the time the sun reached its peak in the sky above them, killed by his own Master’s hand. The thought also didn’t bother him, not if he succeeded at his job and helped Harry take down the Dark Lord.  
  
“Your army surprised us all,” Professor Snape whispered into Harry’s ear as they followed Voldemort and the other Death Eaters, who were cheering and sending up flares of magic into the air. Harry knew his friends wouldn’t be worried, not with his Journal still on and reporting back to them that he was alive.  
  
“You trained them well, Harry, and I believe they made all the difference tonight,” the Potions Master and spy continued. “The Dark Lord lost over three-fourths of his army tonight, and if we win, that’s over three hundred people that don’t have to be searched for. Just kill the bastard, Harry, and we’ll all be free.”  
  
The man’s words shocked Harry slightly, but he also realized Professor Snape had gone through more than anyone else on their side by the Dark Lord’s hand. Tortured, forced to do things he’d rather not do, and furious at it all, Severus Snape wanted Tom Marvolo Riddle dead at least as much as, if not more than, every single person fighting.  
  
“I promise,” Harry whispered back under his breath, just audible to the man. He would kill Voldemort for those who had suffered under him, Professor Snape just one among hundreds and thousands.  
  
“Stop,” Voldemort commanded, and Professor Snape took only one more step before stopping. “Severus, put the boy by my feet, where he belongs.”  
  
Harry felt himself being moved forward before being lowered to the ground, the presence of Voldemort at his back. Soon, Harry would have to show himself and act. Hopefully, Professor Snape would provide enough of a distraction for him to get to his friends.  
  
“It appears I don’t even have to call the fighters to us,” Voldemort said from above him, and Harry was able to hear footsteps as members of the Hogwarts Protectors and the Order of the Phoenix obviously walked down the stone steps of the school onto the grass. From the amount of noise made, there were maybe twenty or thirty people there, meaning most were still inside preparing. Harry wondered what they were doing…

…

Ginny and Tracey calmed down after their relief at Harry’s surviving the Killing Curse again let itself out. They knew that, until Harry arrived back at the castle, they were in charge of the Hogwarts Protectors, meaning they had to act fast.  
  
“Okay!” Ginny called to the entire Hall, silencing the curious and worried adults and drawing the attention of the relieve students. “We have perhaps ten minutes before Voldemort and his forces arrive here, so we have little time.”  
  
“Ron, is the aerial team ready for one more round?” Tracey asked, and the redhead nodded from his place in front of the aerial squad, brooms in hands and pouches full of fresh supplies from the twins on their belts. “First years and strategists, get back to base right now because we’ll need updates _fast_.”  
  
Those assigned to the Maps quickly collected them and took off running out of the Hall, headed to the Room of Requirement.  
  
“Second and third years, take all the pranking supplies we have as well as any other traps my brothers might have and set them up in the Entrance Hall as well as at windows on the third and fourth floors,” Ginny ordered. “Be ready to fire from the windows at the Death Eaters before the fighters on the grounds attack. Hopefully, this will give us an edge.” The younger students took off quickly, stopping by the twins to gather the pouches they were offering before charging from the Hall.  
  
“Fourth years will still be in here, but only until we call for you,” Tracey continued. “This time, you will most likely be called out to the grounds. I have a feeling this is it, people. This is going to be the final round of fighting, so we had better come out on top.”  
  
“Fifth years and above as well as Order members,” Ginny stated, pausing before she continued. “We’re all going to be outside, ready to fight the Death Eaters head-on. They might lead us back into the Great Hall this time; we don’t know. Either way, we’re fighting with all we have. This time, we’re all on the front lines, no one being held back by the castle doors. Any questions?”  
  
“Where’s Potter?” Professor McGonagall demanded, and the other Order members were obviously wondering the same thing, some muttering darkly under their breaths.  
  
“Waiting for the fighting to start to act,” Tracey snapped. “He’s alive and waiting for us, not dead by Voldemort’s hand like many of you appear to suspect!”  
  
Her outburst silenced the mutterings instantly.  
  
“ _Death Eaters are nearing the edge of the forest_ ,” one of the first years announced into the ear pieces of every fighter in the castle.  
  
“Order members and Harry’s closest friends will meet the Death Eaters outside the castle right now,” Ginny declared. “The rest of the fighters will wait in the Entrance Hall for those attacking with pranks from the windows to fire, then join us on the grounds for the fight. Let’s go.”  
  
No one argued with the young redhead, those with colored Journals following her and Tracey from the Great Hall, the Order of the Phoenix following them at Professor McGonagall’s hand gesture and movement.

…

“Are you willing to surrender now that your hero is dead?” Voldemort asked from above Harry. Harry just heard snorts, though there was also some surprise from adults among those outside.  
  
“We’d rather die than surrender to you,” he heard Ginny state, and he internally snorted. He should have known she’d be right in front of the fighters, trading barbs with the Dark Lord.  
  
“Very well, then, I believe it’s time, then,” Voldemort mused quietly. “Aim for the deaths of students as well as Order members,” he ordered, but Harry could feel the discomfort at his orders from most and the tension it created, though it appeared Voldemort did not. “Attack!”  
  
Before the Death Eaters could move, though, a loud bang echoed from behind where Harry lay completely still, and a scream tore through the air. Soon, more bangs followed, and Harry opened a single eye long enough to see second and third years in the school windows, launching prank supplies at the Death Eaters with their wands.  
  
Then, Harry heard the sound of a lot of feet running across the grounds as spells were launched both verbally and silently. When Voldemort moved from behind Harry, he chanced opening his eyes again, turning his head just enough to see that Voldemort had backed away and was distracted… by Professor Snape.  
  
Jumping up and pulling on his Invisibility Cloak, Harry watched his Head of House duel with Voldemort, moving just close enough to hear their words.  
  
“You betrayed me, Severus?!” Voldemort was yelling, firing off a Killing Curse that the Potions Master dodged.  
  
“I was never _yours_ , not since you went after Lily!” Professor Snape snarled back, returning with a Bone-Breaker.  
  
As if sensing him, Professor Snape’s eyes suddenly landed on Harry, silently telling him to run. He was going to distract the Dark Lord as long as possible, but he wouldn’t last forever.  
  
Nodding even though the man couldn’t see, Harry turned and ran, muttering under his breath as he moved, dodging fighters and spells. “Thank you, Professor. I’ll always remember you for this. When you see my mother again, you’ll finally be at peace.”  
  
He found Ginny fighting not far from the castle and slipped his wand out of its holster, pulling the Sword of Gryffindor from his pocket and returning it to normal size. Just before taking off his Cloak, Harry decided to take out his other sword and only sheath, attaching them to his right hip, just in case. Slytherin’s Dagger was still attached to his left hip.  
  
Quickly stuffing the Cloak into a pouch made specifically for it, Harry joined the fight beside his girlfriend. It only took moments for Tracey to join them, and the trio fought in a triangle, protecting the others’ backs. Death Eaters fell quickly to their wands and swords, some with throwing knives slashing deep into arms and legs, thanks to Harry.  
  
Finally, they found a long enough break to heal their minor cuts and catch their breaths. Harry used that time to turn to the two most important girls in his life; they were taking him in, reassuring themselves that he was alive.  
  
“Let’s end this,” Harry stated, and the girls nodded. “Do you know where Sebae is?” he asked Ginny, who shook her head sadly, both knowing that Tracey had no idea what they meant. “I have a feeling she’s nearby.”  
  
“She might be,” Ginny admitted, “but we have no way to find out, so we’ll just have to see.”  
  
“Okay, I have no idea what you two are talking about, but I think we’d better go see this anyway,” Tracey said, pointing to where Voldemort and Snape were still fighting.  
  
Harry took off at a run, sword and wand still in his hands, coming to a stop only thirty feet from the duel. Professor Snape was obviously exhausted and about to lose. Black eyes found green, and Harry recognized the defeat and peace in those eyes, so he nodded. A small smile grew on the face of a man Harry had come to truly respect over his seven years of knowing the tortured man.  
  
As Severus Snape fell to the Killing Curse, Harry knew he was finally at peace and ready to accept his death.  
  
Lord Voldemort then turned and saw Harry, his red eyes widening in shock before he screamed.  
  
“HOW IS THIS _POSSIBLE_?”  
  
Harry just stood there, his weapons hanging by his sides. Internally, he was trying not to laugh at the shock on Voldemort’s snake-like face, but he also knew that this would be it. Tom Marvolo Riddle had to die this morning.  
  
“Come and face me, if you dare, Riddle,” he stated before turning and transforming into his wolf form, running to the Great Hall without thought. He knew it would be a better place to fight than among the bodies and blood of the Death Eaters out on the grounds.  
  
Moments after he rushed into the Great Hall, Ginny, in her lynx form, ran in, Tracey’s light brown cat form on her back. All three transformed, the two girls moving to stand by the walls.  
  
Around the Great Hall, those in the room realized something big was about to occur and moved towards the walls. More and more fighters made their way into the Great Hall, strategists and younger students from the upper floors joining those waiting to see what would happen. Only Harry was in the middle of the Great Hall.  
  
“ _He’s coming_ ,” the voice of Bradley Martin said over the ear pieces, and everyone knew who he meant. “ _We’re coming to watch as all the Death Eaters are coming with him. All fighters, make your way to the Great Hall, if you aren’t already there._ ”  
  
Within the next minute, the Great Hall was full of fighters who lined the three walls facing the entrance and filled up the space behind the Head Table. The middle of the Hall was still empty but for the leader of the resistance.  
  
Soon, Death Eaters poured into the Great Hall, freezing at the sight of so many fighters with wands in hand, just in case. The only place they had to go was along the wall where the entrance was. Finally, Voldemort entered the room and took in Harry’s stance.  
  
“How did you survive?” he asked quietly, his voice almost a hiss that was heard by all as he moved closer to Harry. As he walked, Harry heard a slithering sound he recognized: Sebae. She was in the Hall with them, and he had a feeling the basilisk was surrounding him and Voldemort.  
  
“By taking advantage of something that happened last time you tried to kill me with that curse and failed,” Harry replied evenly, drawing his wand and pulling the Sword of Gryffindor from where he had slipped it into his belt as his sheath was already occupied.  
  
“You see, when you were hit by your own Killing Curse sixteen years ago, your very ripped up soul lost another piece of itself, creating the very famous scar on my forehead and making a connection between us,” Harry explained with a slight smirk as he saw a flash of fear on Voldemort’s face. “This was number seven of your Horcruxes to be destroyed. You’re mortal, Tom Riddle, completely mortal.”  
  
Voldemort’s expression was one of pure fear.  
  
Harry knew he hadn’t realized his Horcruxes were being destroyed, which meant this was the most shocking thing he could learn. The monster in front of him could die, and they both knew it.  
  
Out of nowhere, Voldemort launched a Killing Curse at Harry, who waved his wand and conjured a small block of marble right in its path, effectively blocking the curse. Three more curses followed, and three more conjured stones were turned into dust.  
  
“Hogwarts will never be yours, Riddle, not while its teachers and students are prepared and willing to defend her,” Harry stated. “Around you stand the Hogwarts Protectors, a group of students from all seven years who are trained to do exactly what our name states: defend Hogwarts, this castle, our home!”  
  
“Hogwarts belongs to me, Potter! I am the Heir of Slytherin!” Voldemort yelled.  
  
“The Blood Heir, maybe, but you aren’t Salazar Slytherin’s Chosen Heir,” Harry stated. “Did you never wonder why the basilisk wouldn’t kill anyone when you set her loose except for Myrtle by accident, _both times_? Was there never a thought in your mind that you might not control her like you wished to? That your ancestor disapproved of your goals and ordered her not to kill any student at this school?”  
  
“What are you on about, Potter?” Voldemort demanded, his Killing Curse-throwing paused for the moment by his curiosity.  
  
“Sebae,” Harry stated. “You never even bothered to ask her name, Tom, yet you used her to do murder and then your diary forced Ginny Weasley to do it again!”  
  
“And then you killed her, or so I heard,” Voldemort said, obviously not realizing where this was going.  
  
“So the story we created _did_ get back to you,” Harry mused with a smirk. “Hey, Ginny, do me a favor and cast the counter towards me!” Harry called, not even turning his head.  
  
Before his eyes, Harry saw Sebae’s body appear. It completely surrounded him and Voldemort in a circle, stopping the chance of any magical spell reaching them.  
  
“Recognize her, Tom?” Harry asked as Voldemort’s red eyes stared at Sebae in disbelief. “She remembers _you_ for sure.”  
  
“ _You were the one to force me to do things against my will,_ ” Sebae hissed, only three people in the room able to understand her. “ _I will help Harry and make sure he does not die. You, though, you deserve to die, Tom Marvolo Riddle._ ”  
  
“ _Gin, wish to join us_?” Harry hissed in Parseltongue, a bit amused by Voldemort’s expression.  
  
“ _Sure_ ,” Ginny replied, and Harry could hear her climbing up onto Sebae before sliding down the other side, walking up to stand next to Harry, her wand drawn. “ _Sebae, I’m going to make you invisible again so that the others can see us,_ ” Ginny then told the basilisk, who returned with a positive hiss.  
  
With Sebae invisible again, Harry could see the Death Eaters were scared, and he had a feeling so were those on his side as well.  
  
“You see, Ginny and I knew that telling the school Sebae here was still alive would result in her death, so we faked it,” Harry said in a conversational way. “Not even Dumbledore knew she was alive and fighting in this battle. The two of us were the only ones until now to know she was alive.  
  
“Anyway, I believe I was speaking about how you were a Blood Heir. Tom Marvolo Riddle, Half-blood with a Muggle father and witch mother who had the blood of Salazar Slytherin in her. You, Riddle, believe that just because you are Salazar’s Blood Heir, you are the best and should have this school. Well, I have news for you, Tom: Salazar Slytherin has a _Chosen Heir_.”  
  
Around the room, the students were whispering about what they knew from the Sorting Hat’s songs about the Heir, the teachers were telling the confused Order members about the songs, and the Death Eaters stood in a stunned silence. Voldemort’s face was blank, but Harry had seen his eyes widen when he heard the news.  
  
“You see, my dear friend Tom,” Ginny continued for Harry, her tone dripping with acid as she used the endearment she had given Tom when he had been her diary years before, “Salazar did not trust his own heirs to be the sort of person he wished they would be. He had a dagger, which he charmed to search for people with specific traits. It wasn’t until six years ago that the Chosen Heir was found by the Dagger.”  
  
“The one wielding the Dagger controls Sebae better than even Salazar’s own heirs, for he trusts the person gifted with the Dagger more than his own blood, for the Dagger would only appear to those worthy,” Harry said.  
  
“Why should I care about this?” Voldemort asked in a low tone, his eyes narrowing.  
  
“Perhaps because the Chosen Heir is standing right in front of you?” Tracey suggested as she left her spot on the wall and walked up to where Sebae sat still invisible, her hand touching the skin of the basilisk. Tracey began to walk along Sebae until she reached her head, pulling herself up onto Sebae just behind her head, staying up there, seemingly on air.  
  
Heads snapped towards Harry and Ginny when they heard Tracey’s words.  
  
“Salazar’s main rules for the wielder of his Dagger were simple: a Slytherin willing to unite the Houses, but it couldn’t be for personal gain at all,” Harry stated as he slowly held out Gryffindor’s Sword to Ginny, who accepted it without question.  
  
“For six years now, the Sorting Hat has sung of the Chosen Heir, and now it’s time to say one thing,” Harry continued as his fingers touched the Dagger on his hip, wrapping around its handle with a practiced hand.  
  
“I, Harry James Potter, am Salazar Slytherin’s Chosen Heir.”  
  
As he spoke, Harry drew Salazar’s Dagger and allowed all to see it in its true form. He could feel eyes on the Dagger, including Voldemort’s. Whispers flew around the room, but Harry had eyes only for Voldemort.  
  
“Impossible,” Voldemort whispered, but Harry shook his head with a small smile on his lips, his eyes never leaving the Dark Lord.  
  
“It’s not impossible, and your time is done, Tom,” Harry said softly. “Ginny, use the sword, and let’s end this. Out of everyone in this room, you have more right than any other person besides me to kill him after how he touched your life.”  
  
Beside him, he heard Ginny switch the Sword of Gryffindor to her right hand and her wand to her left, and he did the same with Slytherin’s Dagger. It was time to finally end this.  
  
“ _You will not kill me!_ ” Voldemort yelled as he realized their intentions, raising his wand to begin firing spells at them.  
  
As Lord Voldemort shot Killing Curses at the pair, they moved away, Harry going left and Ginny right. Killing Curses, Cutting Curses, Bone-Breakers, and many other painful curses were dodged, Harry and Ginny sometimes raising shields with their wands.  
  
Sebae stopped all chances of interference from outside forces, her skin too thick for magic to affect it. All those in the Hall could do was watch, Tracey understanding that her friends needed to end this themselves. The Slytherin could feel the Sebae’s tail touching the side of her body to protect her from any stray spells.  
  
Harry launched a Cutting Curse that Voldemort wasn’t expecting, hitting him in the leg and opening a deep wound. Ginny took advantage of this and hit his other leg with a Bone-Breaker, sending Voldemort to his knees. Still the Dark Lord launched hexes and curses at the pair, who were steadily getting closer to him as they dodged.  
  
A Cutting Curse hit Ginny on her side lightly and another hit Harry on his cheek. Voldemort’s _Incendio_ burned off Harry’s robes before the dragonhide armor put it out with its protection. His hair had been charmed against fire, luckily, as all of the students’ were, but the back of Harry’s neck was red and covered in blisters, bleeding a bit.  
  
Forcing the pain aside, as only years of training had taught him, Harry continued moving forward, hitting Voldemort with another Cutting Curse, this one to his wand arm, leaving a gash in it. Ginny was hit on her left arm, the one holding her wand, with Voldemort’s next Cutting Curse aimed at her, allowing blood to flow down her arm and almost making her lose her grip on her wand.  
  
Finally, though, the pair had almost reached Voldemort, and they could see the fear in his eyes. He had thrown all he had at them, made them fight for hours on end, hit Harry with the Killing Curse for the second time in his life, possessed Ginny with his diary Horcrux, yet the pair kept coming back. Before him, each wielding the weapon of their House Founder, stood the two most affected people in either war.  
  
Dodging one last Killing Curse, Harry lunged towards Tom Marvolo Riddle, known as Lord Voldemort, and stabbed him in the heart with Salazar Slytherin’s Dagger, the one full of basilisk venom.  
  
Pulling the Dagger back out, Harry and Ginny watched as the red eyes of the monster in front of them went blank, losing the light in them that had shown the life in his snake-like body, the last look in them one of pain.  
  
Ginny then took Gryffindor’s Sword and stabbed Voldemort’s body through the heart once more as it lay collapsed on the stone floor of the Great Hall. She had finally gotten her revenge for the year that would always haunt her in her nightmares, the year that had changed her for life.  
  
Harry had finally killed his parents’ murderer, saving the Wizarding World in the process. The prophecy made eighteen years before had finally been fulfilled, and the Sorting Hat’s six songs were finally understood by all who knew them.  
  
Tom Marvolo Riddle was dead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So… Different from canon, yet similar in many ways. Hope you approve. It was fun writing how everyone found out about the Chosen Heir, and now Voldemort is dead. I’d say that’s a chapter well done. I am curious to hear how many of you felt saddened by Severus Snape’s death, because it certainly saddened me to write about it, but in my mind, at least I was able to give him a more honorable death, just as I did Sirius. They felt more appropriate.
> 
> In any case, no, this is not the end. I do, in fact, wrap up seventh year as best I can, and there will be an epilogue. No, the epilogue will not be my version of JKR’s; that comes later. You'll see as you continue on.


	46. Chapter Forty-Six

Standing above Voldemort’s body, Harry could hear the cheers of pure happiness from the fighters of Hogwarts while the remaining Order members captured the Death Eaters before they could escape.

Still, he stared down at the body before him. He couldn’t look away from the man who had done so much damage to his life, to his friends, and to his family. Now, after all these years, he was dead, but it had come at a terrible price: Harry had lost every single parental figure he had ever known.

His parents had died before he had even gotten to know them. Samuel and Daniella Davis had been killed the year before because he was Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Sirius had died by Voldemort’s own hand, just as his parents had. Remus was killed by the wound inflicted by the very werewolf who had made him what he was. Tonks killed by her own aunt. Daniel and Samantha Greengrass, killed by Voldemort as he wove his way towards Dumbledore, not as close to him as the others but still close. Even Severus Snape, friend of his mother and a mentor to him throughout his seven years at Hogwarts, killed by the hand of his Master, whom he had spied on for years.

This war and the end of the last had cost him so much. His heart was heavy, not with guilt as many would fear in the beginning, but with loss and sadness and grief.

Ginny dropped the Sword of Gryffindor as he thought about the death surrounding him. As the hilt hit the body, the tip was pulled up towards the ceiling, tearing through Voldemort’s body and leaving blood in its wake, ripping his robes.

Fingers touched his face gently, pulling it up with a soft but insistent pressure. Brown eyes full of sadness met his own emerald eyes, calming him in a way he hadn’t expected. The grief receded and stayed in his heart, but he could feel his body again while looking into Ginny’s eyes.

Ginny reached out to hug him, her head burrowing into his armor at his chest. He could feel her shake slightly with a few tears of relief as she held onto him. It took all of his energy, but Harry managed to raise his arms to return the hug.

The Dagger, still covered in Voldemort’s blood, slipped from numb fingers as Harry clung to Ginny, his lifeline right now. She was the only thing keeping him here, but he needed to know she needed him. He was going through so much right now with the pain welling up in his heart, and he needed her.

As if able to hear his thoughts, Ginny stood up on her tiptoes to reach his ear and whisper in it.

“Stay with me, Harry,” she whispered in his ear. “Don’t forget that I’m here and that I’ll help you.”

His arms tightened around her, her words strengthening his resolve to survive this grief, this pain. Ginny would help him, and he had a reason to keep fighting.

He would recover.

…

Tracey watched from her spot atop Sebae as events unfolded after Voldemort’s death. Though she hadn’t known Sebae before now, she felt comfortable upon the basilisk, though it was a bit awkward to be on an invisible snake.

She was watching as the crowd began to realize Voldemort was finally dead. Death Eaters tried to run, but Order members whipped their wands in their directions and tied every single one of them up, almost at once. Students were crying in relief, screaming towards the ceiling of the Great Hall in joy and happiness.

They had won.

Unfortunately, Tracey was also watching the two who were her closest siblings in all but blood: Harry and Ginny.

She saw the grief taking over Harry, harder than any other as he had lost everyone again, all of the adults he had turned to without a thought. Sirius, Remus, and Tonks were gone, Daniel and Samantha nowhere in sight, though Tracey could see Amelia being hugged by a crying Susan.

His emerald eyes, just barely visible as they stared at the monster he had just killed, were full of such anguish that Tracey felt a tear slide down her cheek for that alone.

Next to him, Ginny had let go of the sword used to finally get revenge on the monster who had tortured her at age eleven, even if it had only been after his death. Tracey saw Ginny staring at Harry, and she knew that her friend had also seen the pain he was suffering.

It was Tracey who watched as Ginny made Harry look at her before hugging him, whispering something in his ear that brought more comfort and resolve than just seeing the redhead had done.

Knowing that Harry and Ginny needed her, Tracey patted Sebae gently, whispering, “Thanks for letting me sit here, Sebae,” before sliding down the snake to walk over to the pair.

Reaching them, Tracey was instantly welcomed into a hug, one arm going around both of them as they each placed an arm around her. Both she and Ginny had their heads on Harry’s chest, and his was on Ginny’s head.

No one else could reach them, nor did they try. The three of them needed this quiet time before facing the crowd, and everyone accepted it as they let out their feelings about the death of the Dark Lord.

…

When Harry, Ginny, and Tracey finally stopped the three-way hug, all they could do was look at one another. Blue, brown, and green eyes looked at one another as they allowed the realization that what they had been training for since after Harry’s second year had finally come to pass: the actual war against Voldemort was done.

Harry slowly bent down and picked up Slytherin’s Dagger, reaching into a pouch on his belt to take out a cloth to clean it before sheathing the weapon. Ginny was doing the same with Gryffindor’s Sword, and Harry also noted that Tracey had begun to clean her sword, using her wand to clean out the sheath of blood. Realizing his custom-made sword was coated in blood, Harry cleaned it and its sheath as well.

Ginny gave him back Gryffindor’s Sword, and Harry made a copy of his normal sheath that would last a few hours, moving the Dagger to its customary place on his left arm and allowing Gryffindor’s Sword to rest on his left hip.

Weapons properly cleaned, Tracey pulled out a burn cream and rubbed it on the back of his neck, making Harry hiss before the sting went away. It wouldn’t take very long for that to heal.

“ _Sebae_?” Harry hissed, and he heard a hiss from his right, though there was no word for it. He led Ginny and Tracey to Sebae’s head, resting his hand on the tip of it. “ _Thanks for protecting us from the others._ ”

“ _You’re welcome, Harry_ ,” she hissed in reply, and Harry heard Ginny translating for Tracey behind him.

“ _Would you like to be visible or remain like this_?” he asked Sebae, who seemed to ponder his question for a few moments.

“ _I think it would be better if I remained like this until you or Ginny return me to the Chamber. Seeing me will frighten those in this room more than just knowing I’m here, invisible, does already._ ”

Harry nodded in understanding. “ _Can you move so that the three of us can get out?_ ”

“ _Of course_ ,” Sebae replied, and he both heard and felt her move, making a path right in front of her head for the three of them.

“Come on, I believe we have friends to talk to,” Harry told his girls, and they lifted one side of their mouths, each grabbing one of his offered hands.

Together, they walked into the crowd of people, congratulating them. Slowly, they made their way towards the Head Table, where their closest friends were waiting. On the way, though, they were stopped by all of the Weasleys, the twins included.

Fred and George snuck up behind the three and grabbed their connected hands, making the two girls use their free hands to grasp their wands, instincts still on high after hours of fighting.

“Whoa! It’s just us!” the twins said together, letting go of the trio and raising their hands in surrender as they spun around.

“Never scare people, especially trained people, who have just been fighting in a full-out battle,” Ron informed his older brothers while walking up to the group, the rest of the family waiting behind them. Ron was looking at all three of them, though mainly at Harry.

“You did well, Ron,” Harry complimented, and the redhead nodded in acknowledgement.

“You did better,” Ron returned. “You met our expectations and surpassed them.” Harry just shook his head. “Harry, trust me, you did. We all hoped you would kill the monster, yet you went and did it by one-upping him by leaving the Chosen Heir thing a complete secret and shoving it in his face.”

“Yeah, about that…” Fred began slowly, looking at the three of them with a slightly annoyed look in his eyes, George looking identical.

“Why did we only hear of this _now_?” George demanded.

“And our lovely sister appears to have known this for years?” Fred added, giving her a look.

“Because the Sorting Hat said so!” Harry exclaimed with a snort. “You guys need to be better informed. The Hat told me that I would keep it a secret until the end, which meant the end of the war, which just occurred, or did you not notice?”

The twins shared looks before smirking a bit and even chuckling in a time when Harry felt it was hard to laugh.

“You win this time, Harry,” George decided.

“But next time, we don’t want to be the last to know!” Fred finished.

Harry just shook his head as the elder Weasleys walked up. He noted Percy was holding back a bit, which was understandable given the tension between him and his family after his deserting them for the Ministry for a while there. Mrs. Weasley was in front, and she pushed aside the three brothers standing in front of Harry to hug Ginny before pulling back. Harry recognized lecture mode when he saw it and decided he needed to intervene.

“Mrs. Weasley, Ginny’s decision to fight was her decision, just as it was the twins’, or yours, or Mr. Weasley’s, or Dumbledore’s, or anyone’s in this room. Just because she’s underage and your daughter doesn’t mean she doesn’t have the option to make choices for herself, especially ones that involve her life or death.” Harry paused as Mrs. Weasley gaped at him, before adding one more point.

“Besides, she hasn’t really been a child since she was eleven, just as I never had a childhood and many of these children lost their innocence on the night of the Third Task, and just as many don’t feel like children after finding out their families were killed by Voldemort. None of us here are children, Ginny and many others least of all.”

At his little speech, Mrs. Weasley slumped in defeat, recognizing the truth in Harry’s words. Mr. Weasley wrapped an arm around her and looked at Harry with a sadness about him while Ginny gave him a thankful look and the Weasley boys wore awed looks for stopping their mother before she had even started.

“You were an amazing fighter, Ginny, and you did very well as a leader,” Bill Weasley finally said into the silence, smiling at his sister, who met his eyes before moving to hug him.

“All of you were amazing,” Charlie commented, and Harry and Tracey nodded in acknowledgement of the compliment. “Your abilities with swords, wands, and knives… how did you get them, let alone teach the entire school?”

“My father knew the war was coming and wanted us prepared,” Tracey said softly. “After our second year, he started us with knives as well as swords and hand-to-hand combat. As we learned that, we learned Occlumency, which helped keep our minds protected and allowed us to learn better. When our friends came over, Ginny and the twins included, we taught them what we had learned. The summer after our third year, he began teaching us more spells, and we took it from there, expanding upon how we fought and our knowledge.”

“During fifth year, when Umbridge was here, we decided it was time to take our training and offer it to those we could trust,” Harry continued on for her. “It didn’t take long for the entire school to join the training, and during sixth year… well, it became more military-like with the oldest students beginning to specialize in some areas like aerial attacks or traps or with swords rather than magic and vise-versa. Once that started, we decided that training like an army was a smart idea and began running practices of an invasion of the school. This was the result of three years of training for some, one or two for others.”

“And the Animagus transformations?” Bill asked.

“The summer after third year, when it was known that Sirius had escaped from Azkaban and everyone thought he was after me, Samuel and Daniella made us the potions, and we spent all year learning it together,” Harry said. “Maya, Graham, and Natalie did it the year after.”

“You’ve been preparing for war for that long?” Mr. Weasley asked, breaking the stunned silence of him and his wife at the news.

“We told you for years not to worry about us, Daddy, but you never listened,” Ginny told her parents. “Unfortunately, we knew not to tell you about the training as you would have told Professor Dumbledore, and we didn’t want him interfering, as he was likely to do with Harry involved.”

“We put up with years of your trying to protect us rather than fight it,” Fred commented.

“But we spent the entire time preparing ourselves to fight and protect our own lives,” George added.

“And it was worth it,” they finished together.

“I’m just relieved you’re all alive,” Mrs. Weasley finally said, hugging each of her children in turn before surprising Harry and Tracey by hugging them both at once. Once she let them go, she wouldn’t let the trio out of her sight even as they fought to get to their friends at the Head Table.

“Molly, you need to let them go,” Mr. Weasley said quietly. “They’re all grown up and don’t need you mothering them, anymore. They have friends to see to.”

Tears falling down her cheeks, Mrs. Weasley nodded and allowed Harry to lead the girls away.

Finally, they arrived at the Head Table. The moment they moved clear of the wards obviously set up there, Harry was mauled by the rest of his friends with colored Journals. He had no chance of understanding them as they all talked at once, a couple even yelling at him. After a few minutes of letting them hug him, he raised up his hands to silence them.

“Before you all start yelling at me for going into the forest or try to congratulate me about Voldemort like everyone down there has been, let me explain!” he told his friends, and while Daphne and Hermione huffed, they all let him explain about the Horcrux in his scar and how Voldemort had to kill him for it to be destroyed. As they learned how he had chosen to go then as it helped them and he would have to die anyway, even Daphne and Hermione calmed down about his choice, though they still hit him upside the head for worrying them.

“So that’s it, he’s really gone,” Justin stated, and everyone looked at the rest of the group before grinning very slightly.

“He’s gone,” Harry agreed.

Unfortunately, he could see the strain on his friends’ faces even as they relaxed and showed obvious relief and happiness. Out of everyone in the entire room, they had lost the most, and Harry wasn’t even completely sure that the Greengrass girls knew about their parents. He had a feeling he was the only one to know for sure as many adults weren’t in the room, searching for the injured and bringing students or Order members into the Hall once in a while.

“Harry…” Tracey said quietly, drawing the attention of the others as Harry turned to face her. “When he… well, you know, did something happen?” Harry looked at the girl he knew so well she was like his twin and held both of his hands in the air for her to grab, which she did. Tightening his grasp on her hands, he spoke directly to her, ignoring the others around them.

“Trace, your parents asked me to tell you that they love you so very much and that they miss you more than anything along with me, but they’re happy up there, not suffering. Both of them are proud of you, more than they could put into words, and they’ll see you again in quite a long time. When they see you again, they’ll be there to hug you and tell you all of this themselves.”

By the time he had finished the message, Tracey was in tears, and he pulled her to him. Looking over her head, he saw Theo and many others in tears at what he had told her. He also saw Daphne and Astoria looking out at the crowd anxiously, and he actually sighed at the sight.

“Thank you, Harry,” Tracey whispered, and he smiled down at her sadly. “You can tell me what else happened another time.”

Nodding, Harry let go of her and heaved a larger sigh than before. Drawing up what courage and strength he had left at that moment, Harry walked over to the Greengrass girls and put an arm over each girl’s shoulders.

“Daphne, Astoria, come here,” he whispered, pulling them a little until they were at the Head Table. He made them sit down on the table. Gesturing for Blaise and Draco to join them, Harry turned to his friends, both of them his sisters.

“When I was dead, I was in tears because, I’m sorry to say, Voldemort found your parents before he got to Dumbledore,” Harry said softly, and both girls choked on their tears as they realized what he was saying. “I was told you would need me, and I’ll always be here for you.”

Saying no more, Harry pull them both into a hug for a minute as they cried before passing them off to their boyfriends, catching the boys’ eyes for a moment. They would take care of the Greengrasses, and Harry would speak with Draco later on anyway.

His emerald green eyes full of tears, Harry turned to the others, all of whom had caught the gist of the quiet words Harry had said and were unable to say another word. Their group had lost more that night than any other person in the entire Hall. Those who had taught them, given them a safe place to live, been their mentors, and had been their parents, for some, were dead. It was a sad time for the colored Journal group, and now they had to live with it.

Harry just wanted to curl up in his bed and cry, but he knew he had one more thing to do before anything else.

Moving outside of the ward around their group, Harry stood there, looking over the Great Hall. Families were getting together, friends were in groups, and the Hall was filled with clusters of people. A few were still cheering on about the victory, but there were groups around bodies of family members lying on the floor, mostly children around their parents who had been in the Order. He didn’t think any students had died that night, which was a miracle in itself, but it probably had to do with how the children of Death Eaters were here, or at least children their age.

Many groups were full of those mourning the loss of their families earlier in the war, as had been occurring the entire school year. Some people were mourning the loss of Albus Dumbledore alone, his body on a conjured table that was raised slightly above the other tables of the dead.

Still, Harry knew what he had to do, and it was better to do it now when they were all here, so he drew his wand and fired sparks into the air. All eyes turned to face him, many red and puffy from tears and others in emotionless masks as they fought not to cry.

“We won the war, and Lord Voldemort is dead, but it was at a terrible price,” Harry said. “Celebrate the victory without a doubt, but remember the loss and mourn for those you knew now gone. Among the dead are Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks-Lupin, Sirius Black, Daniel Greengrass, and Samantha Greengrass, people I knew personally and will be mourning. Please, speak the names of those now gone while fighting in this battle.”

Harry was saddened to hear the name Robert Weston among those who had died fighting along with Cho Chang, a graduated Slytherin by the name of Sarah Jane Smith, a Gryffindor from the year above him named John Jackson, a Hufflepuff from two years above him that went by Douglas Melark, Alastor “Mad-Eye” Moody, Emmeline Vance, Hestia Jones, Sturgis Podmore, and Elphias Dodge. He was completely horrified when the name Ted Tonks was stated, but he could do nothing about it. There were other names said that Harry just did not catch, and he lost track after the first fifteen or so, his heart heavy as heard about the loss in this battle alone.

Each name spoken, though, strengthened his resolve to make sure this never happened again. When he finished school, which he realized meant finishing his NEWTs sometime in the future, he would take his seat on the Wizengamot and make sure the laws changed to hinder the next Dark Lord to come to Britain. He and his friends already had plans for what they wished to do with the Wizengamot, and it would be possible very soon.

“As you can see, more than I wish to number died here in this battle at Hogwarts,” Harry said once the names stopped coming. “They died to improve our world, so we’d best do all we can to be sure it happens. Now, if any of you are wondering why the Aurors aren’t here, it’s because Minister Bones — who is over there, by the way — knew of the Hogwarts Protectors and kept the Aurors on stand-by just in case. They’re going to go out and help those who need it, now, while also coming here to Hogwarts to help clean up.

“Now, HPs, I say it’s time we go to bed. There will be tears these next few weeks, and I have a feeling Hogwarts will be closed and exams rescheduled later in the summer, if not canceled except for OWLs and NEWTs. For now, please, go to your dorms and rest. It’s been a long night and morning, and we’re all exhausted and strained from it all.”

Harry took a deep breath to keep himself going as he continued, “You were all _amazing_ in this battle, even you first, second, and third years who did nothing more than tell us where to go and set off our traps. We all played our parts, and we did them so well that the war is done. I couldn’t be more proud of any of you. Remember that. Now, shoo, get off to bed.”

There were a couple of chuckles as he made a shooing motion with his hands, gesturing to all of the students, his friends behind him included.

As students made their way out of the Great Hall, many adults joining them to crash in various bedrooms throughout the school, Director Kingsley Shacklebolt walked up to Harry. Behind the Director, Harry could see Amelia, and when he caught her eye, she nodded in Kingsley’s direction.

“Harry, can I speak to you for a minute before you head off to bed?” the man asked. “I know you’re tired, but I need the information for the record of this fight.”

“As long as it’s quick,” Harry said, feeling the energy in his body failing fast.

“The students who fought in the battle, you said you were called the Hogwarts Protectors?” he asked to be sure he had it right.

“Yes, and Director, if you make any mention of a single name of a person in this group, you’ll have all of us making you regret it,” Harry stated, gesturing to the entire school. “We don’t want to be known or rewarded for protecting our school, nor do we want the rest of the world to realize how large the group was. If we tell them the name of our group and let them guess from there who was in it, they’ll think the eldest students, not all of us. Leave us unnamed but as the Hogwarts Protectors.”

“Very well, Harry, I guess I’ll do that,” Kingsley sighed. “You make some very good points about the insinuating and it being better that you all remain unnamed. For the record, though, you fought both with and without magic?”

“Swords, daggers, knives, hands and feet, and wands, yes,” Harry said with a nod. “We also had an aerial group on brooms with the Weasley twins’ supplies that they made.”

“So for the record we’ll say that the Hogwarts Protectors were a well-trained group of people who knew how to fight both magically and non-magically and were prepared for the chance of Voldemort attacking Hogwarts,” Kingsley summarized, and Harry nodded tiredly. None of that sounded bad to him. “Thank you, Harry, for all you’ve done these past twenty-four hours. I’ll leave you to your rest.”

Nodding, Harry watched as he walked away. Ginny and Tracey came up to him at that moment. He had a feeling they were going to work together to make sure he got to bed properly, without any more distractions.

“Come on,” Ginny said softly, pulling on his right arm while Tracey had his left.

The trio slowly made their way down to the dungeons and into the seventh year boys’ dorms, where they found Daphne and Astoria lying down with Blaise and Draco, both girls asleep and with tears marking their faces. There was an understanding between all six still awake in the room, and no comments were made as the girls helped Harry sit on his bed.

Slowly, the three took off their armor just as the others had already done, pulling on some of Harry’s pants and shirts, his fitting the girls best as he was the smallest boy in the dorm, though Theo was fighting him for it. Tracey then joined Theo while Harry and Ginny took his bed.

All eight people in the room were exhausted and emotionally spent, allowing them to slip into the grasp of sleep quickly, those they loved close by to help keep away the nightmares at least somewhat.

It was the best they could do.


	47. Chapter Forty-Seven

When they finally woke up, it was morning of the next day. They had all slept over sixteen hours.

Ginny and Tracey helped Astoria and Daphne to their dorms to change clothes, Ginny borrowing from Astoria this time. The boys then slowly got dressed, making sure to have at least a few of their weapons with them after that battle. One never knew what could happen.  
  
After meeting in the Common Room, the group led quite a number of mostly silent Slytherins up to the Great Hall. Once they entered the Great Hall, the quiet buzz of conversation died as all turned to look at the Slytherins.  
  
Harry could see exhaustion and pain on pretty much every face of the students in the Hall. The battle had stolen their innocence without a doubt, and it would take time for them to recover from this. Fortunately, they _would_ recover.  
  
When Harry raised his head to look at Professor McGonagall, she looked him right in the eyes and nodded in acknowledgement. Around her, the other teachers were also looking right at him, as if unsure what to make of him.  
  
“We won,” Harry finally said, “so let’s try to enjoy that the war is done, even if it does feel like the last thing possible right now. Time will heal the wounds created by the war, and we all have each other.”  
  
The Slytherins went to find seats and eat breakfast after that, conversation slowly building throughout the Hall. Harry and his friends all ate for a little while, just listening to the noise, before finally someone spoke.  
  
“When do you think we’re going to finish our NEWTs?” Hermione asked, bringing forth a few snorts that quickly turned into quiet laughs.  
  
“Only you, Hermione, only you,” Theo said through his laughter.  
  
“Only you’d be worried about exams after the battle that ended the war,” Blaise elaborated for Theo, chuckling.  
  
“Hermione, we don’t know what’s to happen to the school, but Professor McGonagall will probably tell us before the day is through,” Harry told his friend as the laughter calmed down.  
  
“They won’t make it so that we can’t take the rest of our NEWTs, Hermione, but they’ll give us a chance to recover from this,” Padma said.  
  
Conversation came easier after that with the group talking about small things like cleaning up the school, getting ready to turn in the black Journals, and other things that didn’t relate to those who had died. Finally, though, breakfast was done, and they knew that they couldn’t put off the one thing they hadn’t done any longer.  
  
Standing, Harry slowly led the way to the room off the Great Hall, where they were preserving the bodies of the dead until funerals could be planned. In a row were the bodies of their mentors, laying there peacefully in new clothes.  
  
Tears fell down Harry’s face as he looked at all of them, even Professors Dumbledore and Snape. It was hard, even after watching most of them die, to look at their bodies and not feel the pain of loss all over again.  
  
Daphne and Astoria were on their knees between their parents, crying, with Draco and Blaise trying to comfort them as best they could. The others just stood around the bodies, looking helpless as tears fell. Harry was barely able to keep from falling to the ground along with the girls.  
  
Eventually, though, their tears all ran out, and the group began to whisper goodbyes to them, Harry telling them that their words would be heard.  
  
As they left the small room, Harry looked back once more and whispered under his breath, “Thank you.”

…

The Den was full of students and adults, spread out all around the room. Some were playing games to distract themselves, a few were using the practice rooms to let out energy, and most were just talking or resting.  
  
Harry pulled Draco aside from the rest, pulling him into one of the study rooms. Both of them sat down, and Harry could tell Draco knew what was coming.  
  
“Your mother sent you to Sirius and gave you the name Black back when we were fifteen, and yesterday she protected me by claiming I was dead,” Harry said. “She loves you and wants the best for you.”  
  
“I know,” Draco whispered, lifting his head so that Harry could see tears in his gray eyes. “I was reading the Journal yesterday when it happened. Please, if you can, get them to let my mother off for her actions. If she has to pay money to compensate for things, she’ll do it. Just try, Harry, please.”  
  
“I’ll do everything I can to make sure she’s free and part of your life from now on,” Harry promised, and Draco sagged in relief. “Come on, let’s go find the others and try to drag them into a game of Risk or Monopoly.”  
  
Snorting slightly, Draco stood and walked out of the room with Harry, more relaxed than he had entered.

…

That night at dinner, Professor McGonagall stood from her seat at the Head Table, looking down at the students gathered there.  
  
“I know I seem to be copying Mr. Potter when I say that you were amazing yesterday, but you truly were,” she said to the quiet Hall. “Now, I’ve just gotten word from the governors on what they want to do with Hogwarts.  
  
“It took a lot of convincing, but I managed to get them to leave the school open until July, allowing the fifth and seventh years two weeks to recover before they take their second week of exams. This will also allow all students to help their peers recover from the events of yesterday. Notices are being sent out tomorrow to your families, informing them of the changes.  
  
“Please use this time to talk to those around you. I know that you all appear to have your own system within the Prefect system, so take advantage of your system and talk to those you trust. Keeping your emotions and thoughts to yourself will only make things worse; talking and showing your emotions will help.” Professor McGonagall took a deep breath before continuing.  
  
“There will be no classes during the next two weeks, but the professors will be available for tutoring for the fifth and seventh years if you wish to prepare for your exams. Funerals will be planned during this time as well, to be held throughout the month of July. If you students are the children of those who died or the only ones able to take care of these arrangements, we’ll work with you to get it done. Remember that your professors are here to help you.  
  
“Now eat and then get some rest. Anything else can wait until tomorrow when you’ve recovered even more.”  
  
Professor McGonagall sat, and talk began again about her announcements. Hermione, Padma, and Terry could be heard talking about NEWTs while Daphne and Astoria were, very slowly, discussing who would deal with the funeral arrangements. Others were talking about the extra time at Hogwarts and how it might be a good idea to have group talks in The Den about what happened.  
  
Still, Harry could tell that Hogwarts was slowly recovering. It would take a while, and most were scarred for life from this, but everyone would regain their footing and stand tall eventually. These students were resilient, and it showed.

…

The next two weeks passed in a whirlwind of activity. Students revised for exams if they had them, older students were sought out by their younger peers to talk about the battle, and many students had to make funeral arrangements for not only those who had died in the final battle but also for those who had been killed before it but hadn’t been buried as the war was too fierce.  
  
It was very rare to see students walking on their own right now. Most walked in pairs or groups if they could, not wanting to be alone just yet. Families had even come to the school to be with their children, comforting them as they talked about the things they had seen and done that day in battle. Andromeda had brought Teddy so that Harry and his closest friends could see him and help her watch him when they were not doing other things.  
  
The Weasley twins had teamed up with all the other pranksters in the school to start a three-day prank war, which cheered up the school and brought laughter back to the halls.  
  
Harry and Ginny were often seen alone out by the lake, talking quietly. They used that time to comfort each other over the losses, talking about memories and hopes for the world now that Voldemort was gone.  
  
Voldemort’s body had been burned by Harry, the ashes Vanished for good, the second day after the battle. The entire school had been there to watch, and it had brought a sense of justice to them all to see him completely gone.  
  
Hogwarts had been cleaned of the Death Eater bodies, those without family sent to the Ministry to bury while the rest were sent to their families. The house-elves had quickly returned the school to its normal state, no signs of the battle anywhere.  
  
The captured Death Eaters were being held at the Ministry, awaiting trial until after school had ended. Harry had spoken to Amelia about Narcissa Malfoy, and the Minister had promised to allow Harry and Draco to speak on her behalf during her trial.  
  
After two weeks of recovery, OWLs and NEWTs took place. Students did their very best, most feeling quite prepared after two extra weeks of studying, usually one-to-one, with their professors. That week passed quickly, leaving the school with only three more days before it was time to finally return home.

…

“I can’t believe this is it,” Daphne said as they gathered in The Den the day after their exams were finally done, just three more days left.  
  
“Seven years have gone by, and we’ve made quite an impact on Hogwarts,” Terry agreed.  
  
“No, it was Harry who made quite an impact on this castle,” Susan said, gesturing towards the Slytherin, who was shaking his head in denial.  
  
“Don’t try to deny it, Harry, because none of this would have happened if you hadn’t shown us the way and been our leader,” Hermione said with a fierce edge to her tone that made Harry hold up his hands in surrender.  
  
“Fine, fine, it wouldn’t have happened without me,” he admitted, “but it also wouldn’t have happened without the entire school giving it a chance and allowing me to lead, so we _all_ made an impact, you lot especially. You were the first to accept my ideas and helped pass them on. This was a group effort.”  
  
They couldn’t deny that, and Harry was grinning a bit smugly as he saw them nod in acknowledgement at his words.  
  
“Hogwarts is going to be different from now on,” Tracey said. “What we’ve done with The Den and the Journals will affect this school for generations.”  
  
“Yes, but it won’t be the same without all of you here,” Ginny said, “Harry especially. You lot started this your first year, and now you’re leaving.”  
  
“And we’re passing on the mantle to you, Ginny,” Harry reminded her. “It’s in good hands for next year, just as I’m sure it always will be.”  
  
Ginny blushed as the others voiced their agreement.  
  
“After what we’ve done here at Hogwarts, changing the Wizengamot will feel exactly the same, if not easier,” Theo commented after a few moments.  
  
“True, very true,” Draco agreed.  
  
“Yes, but we’ll have to sit through the trials and vote on what to do to the Death Eaters before we can bring about our reforms,” Harry sighed. “Still, our ideas about the various laws will make a difference once we can bring them about.”  
  
“We know what _we’re_ doing for the next year,” Draco groaned.  
  
“We’re going to be spending the next few months dealing with older idiots who don’t want anything to change when we, the next generation, know that change has to happen to recover from this,” Theo muttered just loud enough to be heard.  
  
“You’ll do great, though,” Maya said.  
  
“You lot spent the last two years studying laws, coming up with ideas for ways to change them to be better, and just preparing for when you took your seats,” Susan agreed.  
  
“And with my even larger fame behind us, we’ll make changes faster than before,” Harry sighed. When he left Hogwarts, he knew he would be hounded by reporters everywhere, meaning he wouldn’t be going to Diagon Alley or other places besides Marauder Manor and the Ministry for a while.  
  
“True, very true,” Ginny agreed. “Now, let’s stop talking politics and go out to the lake and swim. We need a break from all of this, I think.”  
  
Sharing grins, everyone got up and rushed to their dorms to change into swimming gear.

…

Two days before everyone left Hogwarts, the seventh years for good, the entire school was seen outside on the grounds. Professors were watching the group but not interfering as everyone watched those with colored Journals have a free-for-all magic-only duel, Euan deciding to sit out as, even with his extra practice, he wasn’t really ready for these duels yet.  
  
This had begun with a bet between Theo and Blaise, who quickly dragged the entire group into it until the duel had occurred. It was a friendly duel with money on the line for some, and it involved quite a bit of betrayal.  
  
Protected by shields, the students were watching as Harry, Ginny, and Tracey teamed up to duel the Weasley twins. Astoria and Daphne were working together against their boyfriends while Theo fought with Maya. Natalie and Graham had already been Stunned in the first ten minutes of the duel while Luna had allowed herself to be put in the full Body-Bind.  
  
Susan, Justin, Hannah, Padma, and Terry were dueling each other without teams, randomly switching who they attacked as they tried to take one of them out. It wasn’t working very well, but it was amusing to watch.  
  
Fred was suddenly hit by a Cutting Curse thrown by Harry, and Tracey Stunned him before he even had a chance to see the red spell. George fell quickly after that as it was three against one. The trio then attacked the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws dueling, taking out Hannah, Padma, and Justin before they even realized they were being attacked by others.  
  
Terry and Susan teamed up to defend themselves from the trio as Astoria took out Blaise before the Greengrasses finally finished Draco’s time in the free-for-all. Astoria went to help Maya against Theo while Daphne helped Susan and Terry.  
  
Theo went down quickly at about the same time as Terry. Tracey then Stunned Susan before falling to Astoria’s Stunner. Harry whipped around and got Maya while Ginny defended them both from Daphne. It was finally down to them and the Greengrasses.  
  
Outside the shield, money had switched hands as each person fell while new bets were made about the two-on-two going on before them.  
  
Harry was nicked by a Cutting Curse to the left arm, but ignored it as he hit Daphne with his own Cutting Curse in return, this one on the leg. Astoria and Ginny couldn’t seem to hit the other as they were evenly matched.  
  
It was a sudden change for all but those in the duel, but they suddenly changed opponents, Harry firing an _Incendio_ towards Astoria out of nowhere to change it. Astoria returned fire as Ginny hit Daphne with a small ball of fire, burning some of her robes before Daphne could put it out.  
  
The shift was subtle, but a few in the crowd caught it as Ginny and Harry began wearing down the Greengrasses. Astoria was moving slower and getting hit by the edges of spells more often, and Daphne wasn’t hitting Ginny at all. It didn’t take very long for others to pick up on it just before Harry fired a Stunner at Daphne and took her out, leaving Astoria to barely hold on for another minute before falling as well.  
  
Those watching were looking at the remaining two anxiously, wondering what would happen, but Harry and Ginny just shared a smile before beginning to revive their friends. It confused them all until the pair turned to their audience.  
  
“When we do free-for-alls, there are usually teams, as you saw,” Harry began.  
  
“The free-for-all ends, not when one person is standing, but when one team is left,” Ginny continued. “Once those still standing don’t want to duel those with them, we’re done.”  
  
“So those of you betting can call those saying that Ginny or I would win a draw as we both won,” Harry finished with a small grin.  
  
The shields were brought down, and professors and students alike began to talk to the pair, telling them about how much they enjoyed watching the duel. It had been a good source of entertainment for the school, which was part of the reason many of them had agreed to it.  
  
Well, that and to steal Theo and Blaise’s money by betting against them.

…

“You’re going to be coming over the Marauder Manor this summer quite a bit, right?” Harry asked Ginny as they rested by the lake a couple of hours after their duel.  
  
“Of course,” she said. “The Fidelius is gone, right?”  
  
“Yeah,” he sighed. “After Samantha… Well, I spoke to Flitwick, and he agreed to come with me and take it down. That was last weekend.”  
  
“How did Sirius’ will go again?” Ginny asked, looking up at Harry’s face from his lap, where she was resting her head as she lay on the ground, Harry leaning against a tree.  
  
“Draco got Grimmauld Place, I got Marauder Manor, and his money was split between us,” Harry said. “Some personal objects were given to me as they have to do with my parents and the Marauders, and some things went to others like books to Hermione, but for the most part, it all was split between Draco and me.”  
  
“And Remus and Tonks left everything to Teddy while Daphne and Astoria got their parents’ home and stuff,” Ginny said quietly. “It’s just too much loss.”  
  
“That’s why everyone agreed to stay at Marauder Manor for a while unless they can’t like you and the twins,” Harry reminded her. “Being there will be a bit hard, but we’ll get used to the memories better together, and then we’ll slowly move out over the next year or so, going to the homes left to us.”  
  
“But Marauder Manor will always be the main home for us,” Ginny finished with a grin.  
  
“Yeah,” Harry agreed quietly. They then looked out at the lake where younger students were swimming and having a splash war, the giant squid helping by splashing both sides.  
  
“You’ll come to Hogwarts to visit me next year, right?” Ginny asked.  
  
“Every weekend,” Harry promised. “I’ll help you study and just enjoy quiet times like this. We’ll all be doing it, coming to visit our friends next year. I think McGonagall is already resigned to the idea that she won’t be able to stop us.”  
  
Both of them laughed quietly, remembering how she had stood up during dinner one evening and informed the entire school that she expected she’d be seeing all of them next year quite often, even those who weren’t supposed to be there.  
  
“Things will be different,” Ginny sighed.  
  
“Yes, but hopefully they’ll be better than the past two years have been with the tension of the war,” Harry replied.  
  
“Hopefully.”  
  
Harry just watched as children who weren’t really children anymore enjoyed themselves, playing as if the war had never happened.

…

The final day of the school year had finally come, and it was a very sad day, indeed, as every single student in the school met in the little room off The Den.  
  
At the cabinets stood all five of the leaders of the seventh years along with the four sixth year leaders. At the front of the group were the seventh years, those with black Journals in the very front.  
  
“This school year is done,” Harry said, looking around the room. “I believe we all know what we’re here for. It’s time for my year to put up their black Journals. One by one, please go to your leader and turn them in.”  
  
Slowly, the few without colored Journals in seventh year walked up to their leaders and watched as their Journals were put away, their names erased from them for good. Only Slytherin had no one.  
  
“Now, we have something new to add to the tradition,” Harry continued once it was done. “I’ve been the leader of the leaders since my first year, and it’s time to pass it on. Last week a vote was held by the leaders from years one to six for which of the four leaders in sixth year would take my place, and it was a unanimous decision.”  
  
Harry held out his hand for Ginny, who took it and stood beside him.  
  
“Ginny here will be your leader next year,” he said as he turned to her. “Ginny, do you accept this position?”  
  
“Yes,” she replied, her head held high and back straight.  
  
“Do you all accept her as your leader?” Harry called to the group, and the ringing cheers were all that could be heard for the next minute.  
  
“Ginny Weasley, the new leader of leaders!” Harry said to the room, stepping back and gesturing to her with his hands.  
  
It was sad to see the seventh years leaving Hogwarts behind, but the others were saying their goodbyes and accepting Ginny as his replacement. That was all that Harry could ask for.

…

Harry walked slowly out of the castle with his friends the next morning. All of the seventh years were looking around the corridors as they moved, taking in all they could.  
  
While they would be back next year, it wouldn’t be as a student ever again, and it would never be for very long.  
  
It was hard to realize that this was it, their lives at Hogwarts were done, but it was true. Starting the next day, Harry, Draco, Theo, Neville, and many others would be at the Wizengamot, trying to change things while others were going to start working at the Ministry to make a difference, like Hermione in the Law Department.  
  
As they walked across the grounds, the wind blowing across their faces, the group was silent.  
  
Harry turned around to look at the old castle as they reached the gates. It was just a stone castle, but he knew that Hogwarts was his first home. He would always think of it as a home to him, and he’d always come back to it, even if it meant making up a reason.  
  
Their lives were just beginning, and Harry knew their years at Hogwarts would influence how they lived their lives.  
  
He would never forget his time at Hogwarts, and his legacy would be there for generations to come. If he was remembered for nothing but being the one to unite the Houses, he would be pleased with his life either way, though he knew most would remember him as the one to defeat Voldemort.  
  
Either way, this was his home. He had lived his seven years here, and it was time to move on.  
  
_Goodbye, Hogwarts._


	48. Chapter Forty-Eight: Epilogue

Go,” Ginny encouraged him. “It needs to be you, or it’ll never happen.” Harry took a deep breath and let go of her hand. “Besides, it’ll mean more if you’re the one to show them all what all of us did.”

Harry didn’t need to ask who Ginny meant when she said “we” as every single Journal user past and present had worked hard on making the idea become reality over the past few months.

Gathering the Gryffindor courage hiding deep inside of him, Harry walked up to the front of the crowd in the courtyard of Hogwarts, and everyone fell silent. They had all been waiting for him.

Behind Harry was something large under a tarp, and no one outside of those in Hogwarts and those who had helped build it knew what was under it. It was actually the main reason the whole group had been called there, including the press.

“Today is June 7th,” Harry began, speaking from the heart and not a memorized sheet of parchment like most would have done. “It has been exactly a year since the Battle of Hogwarts.”

He paused as the crowd cheered, though he was quite pleased to see that the Hogwarts students and teachers, ex-students, and Order members who had been in that battle were all wearing black robes and cloaks. Even better, all of them were completely silent, some even looking down at the ground with a couple crying already.

“Most of the Wizarding World here in Britain looks at June 7th, 1998 as the day Lord Voldemort finally fell for good,” Harry continued when the crowd finally fell silent, having to fight hard to stop the rolling of his eyes at their flinches.

“For those of us who fought in the battle, or even those of us who had been at Hogwarts during it, we can’t look at it as a day of celebration,” he said, and the crowd finally seemed to realize he wasn’t there to celebrate anything. “No, today is the anniversary of the deaths of the heroes who died fighting for our world, for the hope of a better world, for all of us.

“Most of us lost friends, family, and loved ones during that battle.” Harry gestured around to those wearing black and standing around the courtyard instead of sitting because they wanted to honor those people.

“Some children were orphaned during it — Hogwarts students and young children alike. Many of us lost our parents before the battle, some of us long before the battle.”

Harry knew they all understood that he was talking about his parents’ death, but he was also thinking of Tracey’s parents, who had died before they could participate in the final battle, though they had made Voldemort’s death possible with their help in finding and destroying the Horcruxes.

“So while most of the Wizarding World is celebrating the death of a madman who caused destruction and death, those of us from the Battle of Hogwarts are mourning the loss, and some are still trying to get over the trauma of what they saw in that battle.”

Looking at the students, Harry met the eyes of the youngest of the students, and he saw so much pain, loss, and despair in their eyes, even after an entire year. So many of them had lost their innocence in that battle, and some had lost more than that.

The crowd shifted as they all began to realize that celebrating the death of Voldemort was probably the wrong thing to do. It was sad to see, in Harry’s opinion, but at least they were realizing their mistake.

“For the past three months, everyone who fought in the war has been working on something to honor those we lost during the battle, the heroes who were willing to give up their lives and did.”

Harry walked over to the tarp and pulled it down. Those in the crowd gasped in awe as they looked at the dark-white marble statue he had revealed, and he could understand their amazement as it was a beautiful yet painful and sorrowful piece.

A phoenix with its wings open made up the center of the statue. Around the neck of the phoenix was a snake, while under it was a lion with a badger by its paws. An eagle with just a single wingtip touching the head of the phoenix seemed to be flying above them all. All five animals had tears falling down their faces, and carved into every inch of the statue were names.

The fallen were named on the statue, each and every one of them. Those who died in the Battle of Hogwarts were gold with Dumbledore, Snape, Sirius, and Remus the brightest of them all and surrounded by bronze. Then the names of those who died or were as good as dead from either the first war or the time before the final battle but after the resurrection were in silver.

Harry looked at the silver names with the bronze surrounding them.

_James Potter_

_Lily Potter_

He had not voted when everyone had decided who to honor above the others. It had been decided by everyone else that his parents deserved the honor above everyone else who had died before the final battle. Dumbledore, Snape, Remus, and Sirius had been chosen because the first three had been professors and well respected, even if Snape hadn’t been liked by most, and Sirius had gone through so much in his life. In a way, he felt it was fitting; Harry just wouldn’t have asked for it or demanded it for any of them.

“The statue alone took just over three weeks to make, even with magic,” Harry finally said as everyone had seen their fill of the statue and he returned to where he had been standing before. “We then spent two months finding and carving the names of the dead from both wars and the Battle of Hogwarts, even including a few people who are as good as dead.”

Harry met Neville’s eyes as he said this, and Neville nodded ever-so-slightly in his direction. His parents were on the statue as well.

“This — honoring the heroes and the dead, whether they fought or not — is what we should be doing on June 7th, not celebrating the death of the man who caused so much death to so many people. If you want to celebrate Voldemort’s death, do it privately, but don’t make a huge deal out of something that is horrific. Today is a day of mourning, not celebrating.”

Harry looked up at Ginny, and he realized what he really wanted in addition to June 7th being a day of mourning for those lost and honoring them.

“In fact, I’d even suggest making June 7th a day of mourning and honoring these people while June 8th should be a day of celebration to remind people that there is always something to fight for.”

When Harry said that, he saw many of the people in black around the courtyard smile a bit through their tears, which Harry had been holding back the entire time.

Tracey shared a look with him that told him he was being the leader he had been forced to be during his time at Hogwarts, especially during the last three years of his seven. The look also told him that she liked what he was saying and felt he was doing the right thing.

“We lost so much during Voldemort’s reign, whether you’re talking about the first war or the second,” Harry sighed a bit sadly, though it was loud enough for everyone to hear him. “It will take a long time to recover from all of this, but we’ll rebuild, and we’ll heal, and we’ll start over. The thing is, we can’t forget what caused this and what we lost because of Voldemort. If we forget, it’ll happen again, and I don’t think anyone wants that.

“Just don’t think of this as a day of celebration, because it’s _not_. Today is a day of mourning and showing our grief over the fallen, so treat it as such.” Harry turned so that he could see both the crowd and the statue behind him.

“This statue will stay at Hogwarts for good,” he said. “We’ve put so many charms on it to keep it as is that the coloring will never fade, and not even spells will harm it.”

Looking out at his friends, his fellow mourners, he spoke again after looking at the statue for a few moments.

“We built this together so that it could last forever, and it will, because their sacrifice will always be remembered and recorded. This is just _our_ way of showing it.”

Harry looked out at the crowd of press and others who had come to see him speak, and he just shook his head and walked over to where the others were, questions and flashes of cameras following him, which he ignored.

“That was perfect,” Ginny whispered in his ear. “I knew you could do it.”

“It was hard,” he admitted quietly, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as they walked over to her family and his friends, who he thought of as his family. They both knew he would never have admitted that to anyone else.

“But you did it,” she said. “You honored those who gave their lives just by saying all of that.”

“I guess I did,” he sighed, and they reached the others.

“Well said, mate,” Draco said quietly.

“Thanks,” Harry replied, and the others all gave him looks that said they agreed with Draco, so he just lifted one side of his mouth slightly in response.

“Come on, we’ve got that feast waiting for us in the Great Hall,” Daphne said finally after they were quiet for a bit. “Only Hogwarts students and those who built the statue allowed,” she added with a slight grin.

Harry also grinned slightly, but everyone in the group knew that no matter how much they all smiled and laughed, none of it would reach their eyes, not today.

Once in the Great Hall, everyone began walking up to Harry, telling him that they appreciated his words and the effort they all knew it was for him just to go stand up there. None of the press or others in the crowd realized how hard it was for Harry to speak like that. He may have defeated the Dark Lord and been the leader of leaders at Hogwarts, and he may be a Slytherin, but it would always be a challenge for him to speak in public, especially about something personal.

Harry had bravery, but not the sort a Gryffindor held; his was quieter and showed more when it came to his friends, family, and loved ones. Otherwise, he was more of a stay in the background, observe, say a few necessary words, and slip into the shadows again sort of bloke. Being the leader of leaders had brought him out more, but he would always watch before acting except in battle, when the two sides of him worked together.

When everyone had finally sat down, no one at the Head Table this night as even the teachers had sat down with students, Professor McGonagall stood up with her goblet, and the room fell silent.

“As Mr. Potter said before, we are here to mourn for those lost,” she said clearly, though her eyes showed her sorrow and grief. “Let us make a toast to those who gave their lives not only in the Final Battle all of us besides the first years participated in, but also to those who lost their lives to Lord Voldemort and his reign.”

Everyone lifted their goblets and drank, silence descending upon the Hall as most remembered at least one person who was lost, basically everyone remembering multiple people.

Then, Harry stood up, which surprised some people as they had thought he had worn himself out when it came to talking to people earlier, but he had had a thought that needed to be said.

“Today is the day we mourn and remember, but tomorrow is a new day,” he said. “I meant what I said when I talked about the celebration to remind us about what we have to fight for, what to live for.

“Remember those lost, but don’t let your grief control your life. No matter how painful losing a loved one is, they gave their lives so that we could have a life to live ahead of us. Don’t dishonor their memory by throwing it away in your pain. Trust me, I almost did it when Cedric died, and I don’t want it to happen to any of you.

“Think about those friends and family you have left, and think about what the future holds, because that’s what’s important at a time like this. Just think about it.”

Harry sat down, and the Hall was silent for a few moments before Draco began quietly clapping, the others around Harry catching on quickly. Before long, everyone in the Hall was quietly clapping for Harry and his words. He was blushing and trying not to let it get to him too much, failing miserably.

“Beautiful, Harry,” Tracey said, and he turned to see the tears in her eyes.

Out of everyone, only Ginny and Tracey really knew how badly he had taken Cedric’s death after his fourth year. When with anyone else, even Sirius and Remus, he had hidden it; but those two always had been able to read him like an open book.

Tracey also understood a bit better than most as she had had just over a year to get used to her parents being gone before the battle, meaning it had been over two years now. It would always be hard, but it grew easier to live with as life went on.

“I was just speaking the truth,” he said quietly, and she nodded in sympathy.

“And are you going to listen to your own words, Harry?” Ginny asked from his other side, and he turned to her as he grinned a half-grin.

“I think I might this time around; especially because I’ve got you to remind me when I forget,” he said, and Ginny smiled a bit.

“Good,” both Tracey and Ginny said as one, and all three snorted slightly in amusement.

“Here we go again,” Blaise groaned theatrically, and all three turned to him with raised eyebrows. “The Slytherin twins and the younger Gryffindor sister have returned.”

“Very funny, Blaise,” Harry stated as he grabbed a roll and ripped it open before buttering it to eat.

“I thought so,” Blaise returned.

Around them, Harry began to notice the rest of the Hall had seen the normal banter between him and his friends. The others were beginning to talk, and the noise level was rising in the Great Hall, though there would always be darkness over the group today, even if some were laughing quietly.

It was as normal as Hogwarts was going to get.

…

Harry stood on top of the Astronomy Tower, his _Firebolt_ in his hand. He was just looking over the grounds as he had exactly a year before, though this time the sun was setting instead of rising like it had been then.

“Remembering?” the voice of Ginny asked from behind him, and Harry didn’t even turn as she moved carefully down the roof to stand next to him, her own broom in her hand as she looked out over Hogwarts, the new statue gleaming in the sun.

“Yeah,” he said quietly, and they fell silent until the sun had fully set and it was dark over their school, even if only Ginny was a student still, and she was about to leave Hogwarts. Both eventually sat down as they looked around.

“You know, I think I’ve finally gotten my closure about all that happened here a year ago,” Harry said quietly, looking at the softly glowing statue, which had been charmed to do that at night.

“Oh?” Ginny questioned.

“Just seeing all of this, building the statue, talking like I have been… I think I’ve finally realized that everything happened for a reason, and it was for a good one.” He sighed gently, reaching out to put an arm around Ginny. “Everyone knew what they were doing when they either came here or stayed, and nothing I could have done would have prevented it.”

“For a Slytherin, you sure do blame yourself a lot,” Ginny commented dryly after a bit, and both of them laughed.

“I assure you, this has barely been in my mind this past year,” Harry finally said. “It’s just something that had to happen subconsciously, because I had already accepted it consciously.”

“That makes sense,” Ginny admitted.

“This all happened, and now all we can do is remember and try our best to make sure this never happens again,” Harry stated, and Ginny nodded under his arm.

And it was true, Harry knew. If they all worked to continue to rebuild the Ministry properly and recorded things the best they could and found ways to make sure no one ever forgot about this, they could stop things from getting this bad every again.

In Harry’s mind, he was finally finding his peace as he looked out at the first place that had ever been home to him, though it most certainly wasn’t the last.

**_Fin_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it. This is the end of Clash of the Alphas. I really hope you enjoyed the chapter and the story and the trilogy.
> 
> However, there is a seven chapter sequel, Life of a Conquering Alpha, that follow up after Harry leaves Hogwarts with flashes from his life, ending with my own version of JKR’s Epilogue, Nineteen Years Later.
> 
> I'd like to thank my Beta, Arnel, from SIYE, because even though she edited this story literally years ago, it still wouldn't have been the same without her input.
> 
> And with that, I bit you ado and hope you see you check out the sequel to this trilogy.


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